What the 2016 Elections Revealed Regarding Taiwan's Politics, as Seen in Democratic Theory

Abstract

Abstract This article attempts to decipher the meaning of Taiwan's January 2016 general elections by focusing on the factors that underscored the landslide victories by the opposition DPP party over the long-time ruling KMT. The ultimate aim is to answer the larger question of how to understand Taiwan's politics from the perspective of democratic theory. Two of the attributes that a true democracy must have are: (1) an opposition party loyal to the common weal of society, as opposed to the party's own egoistic interests; and (2) an independent free media. My study fails to find either in Taiwan under the shadows of DPP's maneuverings.