Taiwan to hold recall election for lawmakers that could reshape parliament

TAIPEI: Taiwan will hold a recall vote for around one quarter of parliament’s lawmakers — all from the main opposition party — next month, the election commission said on Friday, a move which could see the ruling party take back control of the legislature.

While Lai Ching-te won the presidency last year, his Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lost its parliamentary majority, leaving the Kuomintang (KMT) and the much smaller Taiwan People’s Party with the most seats.

The KMT and the TPP have passed a series of measures, including swingeing budget cuts, angering the DPP, though the campaigns to gather enough signatures for the recalls were led by civic groups.

The opposition has 62 of parliament’s 113 seats and the DPP holds the remaining 51. The recall votes for 24 KMT lawmakers will take place on July 26, the election commission said.

The DPP has given full support for the recalls, releasing a video this week calling on people to vote yes and “oppose the communists” — a direct reference to China and what the party says is the opposition’s dangerous cosying up to Beijing.