Why Do Foreigners Call This the Taiwan Mid-Term Election?

By Paul Huang (黃柏彰) and Ross Darrell Feingold (方恩格)

In English language discussion about Taiwan’s local election on November 26, many foreign journalists and scholars refer to Taiwan’s “mid-term” election. The authors have also appeared as guests on overseas television networks that used this term.

However, this term is incorrect for a variety of reasons. At best it is intellectual laziness, and at worst, treats Taiwan as if it is merely an American political appendage.

1. People in Taiwan Don’t Call It “Mid-Term”: In Mandarin, the election is referred to as a “local election” (地方選舉) or “nine-in-one” (九合一) election because of the nine different offices that are to be elected across Taiwan (though the actual number of offices a voter will elect in a specific location in Taiwan varies between three and five).

2. The Date Is Not “Mid” Anything: Taiwan held the most recent election for the President and Members of the Legislative Yuan on January 11, 2020. The new term for the Legislative Yuan members began on February 1, 2020, and the new term for President Tsai Ing-wen began on May 20, 2020. A local election on November 26, 2022 is neither the mid-term of the current term of the Legislative Yuan, nor is it the mid-term of the current term of the President.

We suggest authors who call Taiwan’s local election a “mid-term” consult the calendar.

3. Local Not National Offices: Notwithstanding that many American voters also voted for various local offices on the date of the United States “mid-term”, generally the reference to “mid-term” in the United States refers to the Senate and House members elected that day.

Certainly some voters base their voting decision on the opportunity to express displeasure towards the Democratic Progressive Party led central government of President Tsai Ing-wen, as well as the candidates that she personally selected in her capacity of party chairman without primaries in municipalities such as Taipei City, New Taipei City, and Taoyuan City.

Regardless, on November 26, Taiwan did not vote for national offices.

4. Limited Information Sources: As long-time observers of Taiwan politics the authors are concerned that many of those foreign journalists and scholars who erroneously call the local election a “mid-term” election received their information from a limited number of sources in Taiwan. Foreign language reporting about the 2018 local election was also often erroneous, and too much reliance on a limited number of sources can only lead to inaccurate reporting about Taiwan.

5. Imports American Terminology: Perhaps the silliest aspect of referring to today’s election as Taiwan’s “mid-term” is that it imports American-centric terminology into the politics of a foreign country, and looks at Taiwan through an American lens. Taiwan does rely on the United States for its security, and the Tsai Administration often cites its management of the bilateral relationship with the United States as a reason voters should vote for it in both national and local elections. It is also true that Taiwan’s presidential candidates and political parties yearn for affirmation from the United States, and the January 2024 presidential election candidates will probably seek to visit Washington DC just as previous presidential candidates did. Some in Taiwan are concerned that aspects of the proposed Taiwan Policy Act will give the United States an ever larger role in Taiwan’s national security.

Regardless of the close bilateral relations, Taiwan still retains its own political system, with its own terminology, and this deserves the respect of journalists and scholars.

Paul Huang (@PaulHuangReport) is a policy researcher and independent journalist based in Taipei. He is a research fellow with the Taiwanese Public Opinion Foundation.

Ross Darrell Feingold (@RossFeingold) is a lawyer and political analyst based in Taipei. He previously served as the Asia Chairman of Republicans Abroad.

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