When Taiwan President-elect Lai Ching-te of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party is inaugurated in May, he will face an opposition-controlled legislature that will complicate policymaking in the island democracy.
The most significant outcome of Taiwan¡¯s elections is not the DPP¡¯s unprecedented third consecutive presidential victory, but rather its loss of the legislature and the return of divided government after a 16-year hiatus.
Yet the increased oversight of the ruling party could ultimately serve to strengthen Taiwan¡¯s democracy. This holds especially true for foreign affairs and cross-strait relations, which under President Tsai Ing-wen closely aligned with the U.S. as Washington and Beijing intensified their great-power competition.
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