1996 Taiwanese presidential election

none Taiwan presidential 14,313,288 76.04% 1990 Taiwanese presidential election 1990 2000 Taiwanese presidential election 2000 23 March 1996 李總統登輝先生玉照 (cropped).jpg Lee Teng-hui Kuomintang Lien Chan 5,813,699 54.00% 彭明敏出席著作簽書分享會.jpg Peng Ming-min Democratic Progressive Party Frank Hsieh 2,274,586 21.13% 林洋港省主席 (9to12).jpg Lin Yang-kang Independent politician fdd731 Hau Pei-tsun 1,603,790 14.90% 陳履安院長.jpg Chen Li-an Independent politician Wang Ching-feng 1,074,044 9.98% 230px Results by county-level unit 230px Results by township-level unit President Lee Teng-hui Lee Teng-hui Kuomintang Kuomintang Presidential elections were held in Taiwan on 23 March 1996.Central Election Commission:::Presidential Elections::: https://web.cec.gov.tw/english/cms/pe Central Election Commission 9 January 2020 en 7 October 2019 https://web.archive.org/web/20191007193707/https://web.cec.gov.tw/english/cms/pe live It was Taiwan's first direct presidential election, officially the Republic of China. In the previous eight elections, the president and vice president had been chosen in a ballot of the deputies of the National Assembly, in accordance with the 1947 constitution. These were the first free and direct elections in the history of Taiwan. Lee Teng-hui was re-elected President, and Lien Chan as Vice President. Lee stood as the candidate for the ruling Kuomintang. He won a majority of 54% of the votes cast. His election followed missile tests by the People's Republic of China (PRC). These attempted to intimidate and discourage the Taiwanese electorate from supporting Lee; however, the tactic backfired. Voter turnout was 76.0%.Dieter Nohlen, Florian Grotz & Christof Hartmann (2001) Elections in Asia: A data handbook, Volume II, p558 0-19-924959-8 Candidates The ruling Kuomintang nominated President Lee Teng-hui in August 1995 at its 14th Party Congress after plans to institute a closed primary system by his opponents were thwarted.Copper John Franklin Taiwan's Mid-1990s Elections: Taking the Final Steps to Democracy 1998 Greenwood Publishing Group 9780275962074 104 https://books.google.com/books?id=ShTkbedObTQC&q=kuomintang+nominate+lee+teng+hui+1996+closed+primary&pg=PA104 2020-11-23 2023-04-12 https://web.archive.org/web/20230412120920/https://books.google.com/books?id=ShTkbedObTQC&q=kuomintang+nominate+lee+teng+hui+1996+closed+primary&pg=PA104 liveClough Ralph N. Cooperation Or Conflict in the Taiwan Strait? 1999 Rowman & Littlefield 9780847693269 4 https://books.google.com/books?id=OmkdcFUxP6EC&q=kuomintang+nominate+lee+teng+hui+1996&pg=PA4 2020-11-23 2023-04-12 https://web.archive.org/web/20230412120941/https://books.google.com/books?id=OmkdcFUxP6EC&q=kuomintang+nominate+lee+teng+hui+1996&pg=PA4 live As his running mate, Lee chose Lien Chan, who had attempted to resign as Premier of the Republic of China, to join Lee's ticket.Trenhaile John The New Cabinet http://www.taiwantoday.tw/ct.asp?xItem=54929&ctNode=2198&mp=9 12 October 2016 Taiwan Today 1 August 1996 https://web.archive.org/web/20160915152001/http://www.taiwantoday.tw/ct.asp?xItem=54929&ctNode=2198&mp=9 15 September 2016 deadThe Far East and Australasia 2003 2002 Psychology Press 9781857431339 https://books.google.com/books?id=LclscNCTz9oC&q=Lien+chan+resign+premier+vice+president&pg=PA391 2020-11-23 2023-04-12 https://web.archive.org/web/20230412120919/https://books.google.com/books?id=LclscNCTz9oC&q=Lien+chan+resign+premier+vice+president&pg=PA391 live Lee did not accept Lien's resignation, as Lien's potential successors to the premiership stood little chance of legislative confirmation.Tsang Steve Tien Hung-mao Tien Hung-mao Democratisation in Taiwan: Implications for China 1999 Springer 9781349272792 155 https://books.google.com/books?id=feywCwAAQBAJ&q=Lien+chan+resign+premier+vice+president&pg=PA155 2020-11-23 2023-04-12 https://web.archive.org/web/20230412120920/https://books.google.com/books?id=feywCwAAQBAJ&q=Lien+chan+resign+premier+vice+president&pg=PA155 live After the election, the Judicial Yuan allowed Lien to keep both posts.Jayasuriya Kanishka Law, Capitalism and Power in Asia: The Rule of Law and Legal Institutions 2006 Routledge 9781134738267 233 https://books.google.com/books?id=SjmEAgAAQBAJ&q=Lien+chan+resign+premier+vice+president&pg=PA233 2020-11-23 2023-04-12 https://web.archive.org/web/20230412120922/https://books.google.com/books?id=SjmEAgAAQBAJ&q=Lien+chan+resign+premier+vice+president&pg=PA233 live The opposition Democratic Progressive Party conducted an extensive nomination process: the presidential candidate was selected after two rounds of voting and fifty public debates between the two finalists. Hsu Hsin-liang, Lin Yi-hsiung, You Ching, and Peng Ming-min contended for this position. The seventy-two-year-old Peng emerged victorious and nominated legislator Frank Hsieh as his running mate. Peng opposed trade with mainland China unless the PRC promised to "treat Taiwan as an equal." Though he argued that the One-China policy would lead to another February 28 Incident, he took the position that Taiwan was already de facto independent, so a formal declaration of Taiwan independence was unnecessary unless the PRC attacked. However, Peng rejected unification with the mainland outright, describing the notion as "suicide" and "self-destruction."Deserting 'Independence' http://edition.cnn.com/ASIANOW/asiaweek/95/1027/nat3.html 3 June 2016 CNN 27 October 1995 7 August 2016 https://web.archive.org/web/20160807075528/http://edition.cnn.com/ASIANOW/asiaweek/95/1027/nat3.html dead Former Taiwan Provincial Governor Lin Yang-kang ran independently with former Premier Hau Pei-tsun as his running mate.Sheng Virginia Lin names former premier, Hau, as running mate for March vote http://www.taiwantoday.tw/fp.asp?xItem=13743&CtNode=451 25 September 2016 Taiwan Today 17 November 1995 https://web.archive.org/web/20160927111854/http://www.taiwantoday.tw/fp.asp?xItem=13743&CtNode=451 27 September 2016 dead After the pair registered as candidates, they were endorsed by the New Party. Both Lin and Hau were expelled from the Kuomintang on 13 December 1995.Schubert Gunter Routledge Handbook of Contemporary Taiwan 2016 Routledge 9781317669708 57 https://books.google.com/books?id=jhIzDAAAQBAJ&q=Lin+Yang-kang+Hau+pei-tsun+expulsion&pg=PA57 They supported the One-China principle and favored opening direct links with the mainland.Tempest Rone Defiant Taiwan Puts Beijing in Difficult Straits https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1996-03-24-mn-50762-story.html 25 September 2016 Los Angeles Times 24 March 1996 27 September 2016 https://web.archive.org/web/20160927073525/http://articles.latimes.com/1996-03-24/news/mn-50762_1_taiwan-strait live They argued that the KMT, led by Lee, had abandoned all attempts at unification.Tyler Patrick E. TENSION IN TAIWAN: THE POLITICS;War Games Play Well for Taiwan's Leader https://www.nytimes.com/1996/03/22/world/tension-in-taiwan-the-politics-war-games-play-well-for-taiwan-s-leader.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0 25 September 2016 New York Times 22 March 1996 18 June 2018 https://web.archive.org/web/20180618203331/https://www.nytimes.com/1996/03/22/world/tension-in-taiwan-the-politics-war-games-play-well-for-taiwan-s-leader.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0 live A second independent ticket consisted of former Control Yuan President Chen Li-an for president and Control Yuan member Wang Ching-feng for vice president. Chen Li-an, the son of former Premier and Vice President Chen Cheng, used his Buddhist background (lay leader of the Fo Guang Shan order) and stressed moral purity and honest government. He walked wearing a farmer's straw hat for eighteen days to spread his views.Roy Denny Taiwan: A Political History 2003 Cornell University Press 9780801488054 199 https://books.google.com/books?id=DNqasVI-gWMC&q=Chen+Li-an+eighteen+days&pg=PA199 2020-11-23 2023-04-12 https://web.archive.org/web/20230412120911/https://books.google.com/books?id=DNqasVI-gWMC&q=Chen+Li-an+eighteen+days&pg=PA199 liveCopper John Franklin Taiwan's Mid-1990s Elections: Taking the Final Steps to Democracy 1998 Greenwood Publishing Group 9780275962074 106 https://books.google.com/books?id=ShTkbedObTQC&q=Chen+Li-an+eighteen+days&pg=PA106 Former Taipei mayor Kao Yu-shu declared an end to his candidacy in January 1996.Copper John Franklin Taiwan's Mid-1990s Elections: Taking the Final Steps to Democracy 1998 Greenwood Publishing Group 9780275962074 99 https://books.google.com/books?id=ShTkbedObTQC&q=Kao+Yu-shu+1996+president&pg=PA99 2020-11-23 2023-04-12 https://web.archive.org/web/20230412120924/https://books.google.com/books?id=ShTkbedObTQC&q=Kao+Yu-shu+1996+president&pg=PA99 liveSheng Virginia Independents fault sign-up rules; One presidential hopeful abandons race in protest http://www.taiwantoday.tw/fp.asp?xItem=13887&CtNode=122 16 September 2016 Taiwan Today 12 January 1996 dead https://web.archive.org/web/20160816150453/http://www.taiwantoday.tw/fp.asp?xItem=13887&CtNode=122 16 August 2016 Feminist writer Shih Chi-ching also bid for the presidency, selecting Wu Yue-chen as her vice president. However, Shih and Wu's campaign ended after the Judicial Yuan ruled against them, finding that the ticket failed to meet the endorsement quota.Han Cheung Taiwan in Time:The 'Divorce Queen' http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/feat/archives/2017/01/08/2003662714 8 January 2017 Taipei Times 8 January 2017 8 January 2017 https://web.archive.org/web/20170108143218/http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/feat/archives/2017/01/08/2003662714 live Mudslinging was rampant between the remaining four presidential tickets. The KMT claimed that the Taiwanese mafia had amputated Peng's arm to recoup gambling debts. However, Peng had lost his arm in an American air raid on Nagasaki during World War II. Independent candidate Lin Yang-kang alleged that Lee Teng-hui was a member of the Chinese Communist Party, which he denied at the time, but later admitted involvement in a 2002 interview.Schmetzer Uli Taiwanese Exercising Democracy https://www.chicagotribune.com/1996/03/23/taiwanese-exercising-democracy/ 25 September 2016 Chicago Tribune 23 March 1996 27 September 2016 https://web.archive.org/web/20160927054133/http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1996-03-23/news/9603230063_1_mainland-affairs-council-taiwan-strait-president-lee-teng-hui liveLin Mei-Chun Lee admits to fling with Communism http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2002/11/08/0000178746 26 October 2014 Taipei Times 8 November 2002 26 October 2014 https://web.archive.org/web/20141026033015/http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2002/11/08/0000178746 live The Kuomintang's website was also subject to cyberattacks. Chen Li-an criticized every other candidate for their advanced age.Lin Jennifer Taiwan Campaigning Has A Familiar Ring http://articles.philly.com/1996-03-21/news/25636813_1_kmt-peng-lin-yang-kang 3 June 2016 Philadelphia Inquirer 21 March 1996 23 June 2016 https://web.archive.org/web/20160623221300/http://articles.philly.com/1996-03-21/news/25636813_1_kmt-peng-lin-yang-kang dead 1996 Taiwan Strait Crisis Third Taiwan Strait Crisis From March 8 to March 15, the People's Liberation Army sent ballistic missiles within 25 to 35 nmi km on flip (just inside the ROC's territorial waters) off the ports of Keelung and Kaohsiung. This action was intended to intimidate the Taiwanese electorate into voting against Lee and Peng, which Beijing branded "absolutely identical in attempting to divide the motherland."Roy Denny Taiwan: A Political History 2003 Cornell University Press 9780801488054 198 https://books.google.com/books?id=DNqasVI-gWMC&pg=PA198 2016-06-03 2023-04-12 https://web.archive.org/web/20230412120922/https://books.google.com/books?id=DNqasVI-gWMC&pg=PA198 live Similarly, Chen Li-an warned, "If you vote for Lee Teng-hui, you are choosing war."Crowell Todd Bodeen Chris Confrontations http://edition.cnn.com/ASIANOW/asiaweek/96/0315/nat6.html 3 June 2016 CNN 15 March 1996 7 August 2016 https://web.archive.org/web/20160807081055/http://edition.cnn.com/ASIANOW/asiaweek/96/0315/nat6.html dead The crisis ended when two U.S. aircraft carrier battle groups were positioned near Taiwan.Wu Yu-shan Wu Yu-Shan Taiwan's Domestic Politics and Cross-Strait Relations The China Journal January 2005 53 53 35–60 10.2307/20065991 live https://web.archive.org/web/20161001195300/http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/fac/soc/pais/research/researchcentres/cpd/easg/easg_calendar/taiwan27s_domestic_politics_and_cross-strait_relations.pdf 20065991 145301834 http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/fac/soc/pais/research/researchcentres/cpd/easg/easg_calendar/taiwan27s_domestic_politics_and_cross-strait_relations.pdf 1 October 2016 Lee, who told his people to resist "state terrorism,"Chinoy Mike Chinese premier urges U.S. not to 'aggravate' situation http://www.cnn.com/WORLD/9603/china_taiwan/17/ 25 September 2016 CNN.com 17 March 1996 25 March 2022 https://web.archive.org/web/20220325125657/http://www.cnn.com/WORLD/9603/china_taiwan/17/ live was seen as a strong leader who could negotiate with the PRC. Because of this, many constituents from southern Taiwan who favored independence voted for him.Tyler Patrick E. Taiwan's leader wins its election and a mandate https://www.nytimes.com/1996/03/24/world/taiwan-s-leader-wins-its-election-and-a-mandate.html 25 September 2016 New York Times 24 March 1996 9 March 2014 https://web.archive.org/web/20140309051533/http://www.nytimes.com/1996/03/24/world/taiwan-s-leader-wins-its-election-and-a-mandate.html live One Taipei newspaper, United Daily News, reported that up to 14 to 15 percent of Lee's 54% vote share came from DPP supporters.Bellows Thomas J. "The March 1996 Elections in the Republic of China on Taiwan" - American Journal of Chinese Studies (Vol. 3, No. 2, October 1996) 243 Results Independent Chen Li-an Wang Ching-feng 1074044 Kuomintang Lee Teng-hui Lien Chan 5813699 Democratic Progressive Party Peng Ming-min Frank Hsieh 2274586 Independent Lin Yang-kang Hau Pei-tsun 1603790 117160 14313288 CEC By administrative division SubdivisionElectorate1234InvalidTurnoutMarginChen Li-anLee Teng-hui 20x20pxPeng Ming-minLin Yang-kang Wang Ching-feng Lien Chan 20x20px Frank Hsieh Hau Pei-tsun Votes % Votes % Votes % Votes % Taipei City 1,842,261 165,541 11.89% 541,721 38.90% 338,895 24.34% 346,272 24.87% 12,522 76.26% 202,826 Taipei County 2,166,016 186,973 11.37% 793,718 48.28% 370,728 22.55% 292,541 17.79% 17,074 76.69% 422,990 Keelung City 254,276 25,950 13.42% 97,223 50.27% 34,256 17.71% 35,978 18.60% 1,747 76.75% 62,967 Yilan County 313,770 20,573 8.94% 126,405 54.92% 68,044 29.56% 15,154 6.58% 2,063 74.02% 58,361 Taoyuan County 985,365 91,048 12.02% 423,198 55.85% 114,901 15.16% 128,607 16.97% 9,955 77.91% 308,297 Hsinchu County 270,365 24,746 11.67% 140,321 66.20% 23,555 11.11% 23,342 11.01% 3,051 79.53% 116,766 Hsinchu City 226,574 22,603 12.93% 93,812 53.65% 28,281 16.17% 30,155 17.25% 2,031 78.07% 65,531 Miaoli County 376,581 29,884 10.31% 202,593 69.87% 31,036 10.70% 26,459 9.12% 3,795 78.01% 171,557 Taichung County 897,357 71,030 10.01% 426,668 60.15% 115,034 16.22% 96,594 13.62% 9,099 80.06% 311,634 Taichung City 555,794 46,844 11.11% 195,865 46.45% 82,416 19.55% 96,509 22.89% 4,084 76.60% 113,449 Changhua County 841,294 62,138 9.70% 407,820 63.63% 116,154 18.12% 54,776 8.55% 8,412 77.18% 291,666 Nantou County 371,630 14,552 5.31% 86,357 31.52% 45,556 16.63% 127,537 46.55% 2,786 74.48% 40,801 Yunlin County 521,592 25,914 7.22% 237,871 66.29% 68,785 19.17% 26,247 7.31% 4,343 69.63% 169,086 Chiayi County 398,362 17,515 6.37% 180,709 65.70% 63,101 22.94% 13,716 4.99% 3,105 69.82% 117,608 Chiayi City 175,137 12,761 9.90% 60,628 47.04% 42,984 33.35% 12,515 9.71% 1,130 74.24% 17,644 Tainan County 742,953 41,263 7.48% 347,825 63.05% 134,969 24.47% 27,590 5.00% 5,686 75.02% 212,856 Tainan City 469,463 39,058 10.97% 201,436 56.58% 84,929 23.85% 30,603 8.60% 3,136 76.50% 116,507 Kaohsiung City 952,202 68,158 9.29% 371,391 50.62% 200,406 27.32% 93,691 12.77% 7,089 77.79% 170,985 Kaohsiung County 809,157 47,790 7.64% 374,386 59.88% 151,943 24.30% 51,139 8.18% 6,210 78.04% 222,443 Pingtung County 623,207 26,644 5.78% 289,812 62.91% 117,283 25.46% 26,902 5.84% 4,752 74.68% 172,529 Taitung County 176,313 8,160 7.52% 74,211 68.42% 14,506 13.37% 11,584 10.68% 1,709 62.49% 59,705 Hualien County 245,715 14,568 8.91% 104,740 64.05% 18,383 11.24% 25,836 15.80% 2,364 67.51% 86,357 Penghu County 63,533 4,170 10.29% 25,367 62.61% 8,070 19.92% 2,907 7.18% 563 64.65% 17,297 Kinmen County 30,476 5,805 28.09% 8,401 40.65% 336 1.63% 6,123 29.63% 401 69.12% 8,065 Lienchiang County 3,895 356 13.56% 1,221 46.51% 35 1.33% 1,013 38.59% 53 68.75% 1,186 Source: CEC Overview Table CEC Visual Query Maps right|300px Result right|300px Peng Ming-min right|300px Lee Teng-hui right|300px Lin Yang-kangResult by County level right|300px Result right|300px Peng Ming-min right|300px Lee Teng-hui right|300px Lin Yang-kangResult by Township level 250px|thumb|Vote leader and vote share in township-level districts.250px|thumb|Vote leader in county-level districts.250px|thumb|National winner vote lead over national runner-up by township/city or districtLee did not lead in all township-level units. Blue: Lee-Lien ticket; Yellow: Lin-Hau ticket Notes References President Taiwan Category:Presidential elections in Taiwan Taiwan