Taiwan votes in key election under Chinese threats

Millions of Taiwanese voted for a new President in the face of threats from China that choosing the wrong leader could set the stage for war on the self-ruled island

Millions of Taiwanese voted on January 13 for a new President in the face of threats from China that choosing the wrong leader could set the stage for war on the self-ruled island.

Beijing slammed frontrunner Lai Ching-te, the current vice president, as a dangerous “separatist” in the days leading up to the poll, and on the eve of the vote, its Defence Ministry vowed to “crush” any move towards Taiwanese independence.

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Communist China claims self-ruled Taiwan, separated from the mainland by a 180-kilometre (110-mile) strait, as its own and says it will not rule out using force to bring about “unification”, even if conflict does not appear imminent.

Voting began at 8:00 am (0000 GMT) at nearly 18,000 polling stations across the island, with almost 20 million people eligible to cast ballots.

In a Taipei school, 54-year-old professor Karen was the first in line to enter a polling booth.

“I looked into the ballot box and felt that I’ve never been as excited as this moment, because there is one candidate I believe who can bring hope to the future of Taiwan,” she told AFP.