Days before the election, lagging in the polls, Democratic Progressive Party candidate Hseih had campaigned on a platform of theorizing that China's concurrent crackdown on Tibet could happen to Taiwan next. Ma accused Hseih of exploting the Tibet crackdowns for political gains.
Ma, of the Nationalist Party, won by 17 percentage points. Though his party favors unification with China, Ma claimed he would not press for this because it ran counter to the will of the Taiwanese people. He did promise, though, to strengthen economic ties with Beijing and to attempt to negotiate a peace treaty. To China's relief, Ma said he would "make it crystal clear that Taiwan will be a stakeholder and will not rock the boat in the region. By stakeholder, I mean peacemaker."
What remains to be seen now is whether China will push a mile if given 100 yards of concessions. They still want no less than unification, and have long threatened to take Taiwan by force if needed. And if that should happen, the U.S. -- who characterized the election as "free and fair" and a "milestone" -- is required by law to come to Taiwan's defense.
