The 2024 Taiwan presidential election happens tomorrow, when voters will enter the voting booth to choose who will lead Taiwan over the next four years.
Some 1.2 million first time voters will be able to cast their ballots for the very first time, roughly 6% of the total 19.5 million voting-age population. With a close race between three candidates, no side dares neglect these voters. Capturing the young vote has been a focal point for the presidential candidates, and related policies target this group as well. For example, Hou Yu-ih (侯友宜) of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) puts forward a “Youth Home Purchase 555 Plan” (青年購屋555方案) that would fully exempt young first-time home buyers paying a down payment if five conditions are met. The Democratic Progressive Party’s (DPP) Lai Ching-te (賴清德) has pushed to expand preferential housing loans for young homeowners, while Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) of the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) proposed to increase and diversify social housing units and provide more rent subsidies.
According to Taiwan’s Central Election Commission (CEC), the turnout rate for the 20-24, 25-29, 30-34 and 35-39 age groups in 2020 were 72.7%, 71.8%, 71.5% and 70.0%. Although these numbers are lower than the average turnout rate, the numbers grew by 14.7%, 15.5%, 13.9% and 11.2%, respectively, compared to four years prior, helping push current president Tsai Ing-wen’s share of the vote to 8.17 million.
However, based on coverage from local media, young voters seem to be less motivated to travel back to their hometowns to vote, with one university student telling TVBS “some feel that maybe the candidates they support might not be able to win the election, so their votes would not make a difference.”
Voters tomorrow must bring their national ID card, their voting notice and their chop. Five things are prohibited: bringing mobile phones to the voting station; taking photos of the voting station; bringing campaign materials to the voting station; showing who you voted on the ballot; and, lastly, taking a ballot from the voting station.
On Tuesday afternoon, a presidential alert notified the public that a satellite launched from China was flying over the southern part of the country. The message caused confusion because the English translation used the word “missile.” According to Chinese sources, China launched the Einstein Probe (愛因斯坦針衛星) from its Xichang Satellite Launch Center (中國西昌衛星發射中心) in Sichuan province’s Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture (涼山彝族自治州). Per Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defense, it explained that a Chinese rocket carrying a satellite deviated from its expected flight path toward Taiwan.The rocket’s trajectory diverged over Chenzhou in China’s Hunan province. Concerned about potential damage from rocket debris, the defense ministry sent a warning via the Public Warning System. It later clarified that no political pressure influenced the decision. The rocket passed over Taiwan at an outer space altitude of approximately 500 kilometers. The MND apologized for an English translation error in the alert.
China looks like it’s making moves to scare Taiwanese before they cast their ballots. Taiwan’s defense ministry reported monitoring 10 Chinese military aircraft, six naval vessels, and five balloons within the vicinity of the country from 6 a.m. on Thursday to 6 a.m. today. Additionally, two Chinese rockets carrying satellites were launched on Thursday.
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