Taiwanese voters aligned with the position of President Tsai Ing-wen¡¯s government on four issues in a weekend referendum, a win for the leader ahead of elections next year.
More than 50% of voters said ¡°no¡± to reimposing a ban on imports of pork containing trace amounts of ractopamine, a feed additive used by many U.S. producers.
A ¡°yes¡± result would have presented Tsai with the dilemma of conforming to the people¡¯s will and potentially upset Taiwan¡¯s most important political and military backer, or keep the doors open to U.S. pork and risk a domestic political backlash less than a year before key regional elections. Maintaining Washington¡¯s support is particularly important as Beijing ramps up a pressure campaign on the democratically ruled island that the Communist Party considers a breakaway territory despite never having ruled it.
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