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Supporters of the mayor of Taipei city and mayor of the city, Ko Wen-je, applaud in Taipei, Taiwan on Saturday, November 24, 2018. The ruling party suffered a major defeat on Saturday in local elections , regarded as a referendum on the independence of the president-leaning president's administration faced with China's growing economic and political pressure. (Chiang Ying-ying / Associated Press)
TAIPEI, Taiwan – Latest news on local elections in Taiwan (all local times):
10 hours
Voters in Taiwan have approved a referendum opposing same-sex marriage, while rejecting the proposal to change the name of its Olympic team in Taiwan from current Chinese Taipei.
The referendums were among the 10 voted in the elections to the mayor of the island town, which hit Saturday a major setback to President Tsai Ing-wen's independence party.
Voting initiatives are only advisory in Taiwan, but the vote in favor of limiting marriage to male-female couples will put legislators in a difficult position. They are facing a court order to legalize same-sex marriage by 2019 and elections in 2020.
China, which regards Taiwan as part of its territory, opposes the proposal to use the name Taiwan in future international sporting events. It was perceived as a test of support for independence.
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8:45
China says results of local elections in Taiwan, where President Tsai Ing-wen's party, victim of independence, suffered a major defeat, show willingness to strengthen relations between mainland and autonomous island .
Ma Xiaoguang, spokesperson for the Taiwan Affairs Office in Beijing, said: "We have seen the election results," he said. They expressed "the strong will of the Taiwanese public to share the benefits of peaceful development in the Taiwan Strait, and wish to improve the island's economy and the well-being of the people."
He said his government would continue to treat Taiwan as a part of China and "will resolutely oppose the separatist elements advocating" Taiwan independence "and their activities."
Elections for mayors and thousands of local posts were seen as a pivotal test for Tsai's two-year-old administration, as Beijing has stopped attacking for its refusal to 39 support his claim that Taiwan is part of China.
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9:55 p.m.
Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen has resigned as leader of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party to assume responsibility for a major defeat suffered by his party in local elections.
Tsai will remain president and his resignation will have no direct effect on the government's affairs. At a brief press conference held Saturday at the PDP headquarters after the elections, Ms. Tsai also said that she had refused the resignation of Prime Minister William Lai, saying that she wished that he continue its reform program.
Tsai said, "Today, democracy has taught us a lesson. We must study and accept the higher expectations of the people. "
The elections for mayors and thousands of local posts are seen as a pivotal test for the two-year-old Tsai administration that Beijing has stopped attacking for its refusal to support its assertion that Taiwan belongs to China.
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8:10 p.m.
The ruling Democratic Progressive Party in Taiwan suffered a major defeat in local elections, considered a referendum on the island president under increasing pressure from China.
May's elections for mayors and thousands of local posts are an essential test for the administration of two-year-old President Tsai Ing-wen, whom Beijing implacably attacked for refusing to support his claim that Taiwan is part of China.
Tsai's PDP lost the presidency of the nationalist party in the southern port city of Kaohsiung, where he had been in power for 20 years. Nationalists ruled Taiwan for decades after its separation from mainland China in 1949, amidst the civil war.
The nationalists also beat the PDP in downtown Taichung, while Ko Wen-je, the independent mayor of the capital, Taipei, seemed on track for a second term.
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10:35
The Taiwanese began voting in the mid-term local elections, considered a referendum on the administration of President Tsai Ing-wen, in the face of growing pressure from China's powerful rival, the island.
The elections following Tsai's overwhelming victory in 2016 will decide races for 22 mayors and county magistrates, as well as for thousands of local officials.
Two years ago, the opposition nationalists, who had been expelled from power, were hoping to return to their territory by bolstering their corporate image and on a more accommodating line towards Beijing.
Since being elected in 2016, Tsai has de facto maintained Taiwan's independence status while avoiding calls for the proclamation of a formal separation from the continent.
China has increased pressure on the island to claim its own territory by poaching its diplomatic partners, suppressing official contacts and organizing threatening military exercises.
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