A failed campaign in Taiwan to unseat lawmakers has handed Beijing and the island’s opposition new ammunition against President Lai Ching-te, potentially deepening a political deadlock that prevents his government from strengthening defenses against China.
All 24 Kuomintang lawmakers survived recall votes over the weekend, dealing a blow to Lai’s Democratic Progressive Party and its hopes of regaining a parliamentary majority. Analysts had expected at least some of them to lose their seats.
"China will likely use Saturday’s result to amplify the narrative that Taiwan President Lai Ching-te and his government don’t have the support of the majority of Taiwanese people and try to use the narrative to discredit Lai’s policies,” said William Yang, a senior analyst for Northeast Asia at the Crisis Group.
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