The Democratic Progressive Party held its 12th chairperson elections on May 18th, with Dr. Tsai Ing-wen emerging as the winning candidate.
Chairman Frank Hsieh held a press conference after the election with the two candidates, Tsai Ing-wen and Koo Kwang-ming. Chairman Hsieh announced that nearly 130,000 party members cast their ballots, a voter turnout which exceeded 51%. He also expressed the highest respect for Koo, who displayed a strong sense of commitment to the party despite the fact that he was already 82 years old. Chairman Hsieh said that as the election had successfully concluded, the party must look towards the future and rally around the new chairwoman. Tsai began by thanking Chairman Hsieh for making the commitment to conduct a successful election. She also thanked Koo Kwang-min and Trong Tsai, two of her competitors during the election process, for their valuable advice. Trong Tsai dropped out of the race prior to the election. Tsai said that although there were disagreements among the candidates, they left no wounds which would prevent the party from coming together. She added that although the elections have just ended, the party’s challenges are just beginning. On May 20th, the DPP will become the opposition party in Taiwan, a party without government resources, and all party members must take this into account. Ing-wen Tsai stated that it is the responsibility of the Democratic Progressive Party to protect Taiwan’s sovereignty, consolidate its democratic institutions, and uphold the principles of social equality and justice. She is confident that the DPP can regain the trust of the people, revive its ideals, strengthen the skills of staff, and deepen DPP’s grassroots support. Although the party is currently in a difficult place, she is confident that the Democratic Progressive Party will endure. Election Result Table 12th Democratic Progressive Party Chairperson Elections: Official Results | May 18, 2008 Results Voter Turnout Rate: 51.62% | Elected Candidate |
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| Candidates | Koo Kwang-min | Ing-wen Tsai | Trong Tsai | Votes Received | Votes Received | Votes Received | Taipei City | 7209 | 7406 | 533 | Kaohsiung City | 6582 | 8573 | 1029 | Taipei County | 7336 | 11766 | 1116 | Ilan County | 1135 | 2191 | 155 | Taoyuan County | 1490 | 4524 | 350 | Hsinchu County | 126 | 790 | 47 | Miaoli County | 338 | 968 | 89 | Taichung County | 2709 | 3383 | 339 | Changhwa County | 2309 | 1694 | 243 | Nantou County | 346 | 456 | 45 | Yunlin County | 1074 | 1441 | 132 | Chiayi County | 918 | 2802 | 144 | Tainan County | 3519 | 4368 | 440 | Kaohsiung County | 3073 | 8045 | 866 | Pingtung County | 1321 | 4609 | 310 | Hualien County | 937 | 737 | 63 | Taitung County | 125 | 340 | 29 | Penghu County | 298 | 202 | 25 | Keelung City | 232 | 493 | 24 | Hsinchu City | 76 | 449 | 8 | Taichung City | 2430 | 2799 | 214 | Chiayi City | 1321 | 490 | 35 | Tainan City | 3224 | 4242 | 340 | Kinmen County | 56 | 317 | 17 | Laborers Chapter | 366 | 431 | 46 | Overseas Chapter | 376 | 321 | 7 | Total (Percentage of Votes Received) | 48926 (37.81%) | 73837 (57.06%) | 6646 (5.05%) |
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