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    January 14, 2012

Taiwan Re-Elects President Ma

   VOA News
   Taiwanese President Ma Ying-jeou declares his victory in the
   presidential election, Saturday, Jan. 14, 2012, in Taipei, Taiwan.
   Photo: AP
   Taiwanese President Ma Ying-jeou declares his victory in the
   presidential election, Saturday, Jan. 14, 2012, in Taipei, Taiwan. Ma
   won a close re-election fight, leveraging his message of greater
   prosperity through expanded ties with China to beat his populist-minded
   opponent, Tsai Ing-wen.

   Throngs of supporters are celebrating outside the election headquarters
   of incumbent Taiwanese President Ma Ying-jeou, who secured another
   four-term term Saturday after beating opposition leader Tsai Ing-wen.
   Cheers rose when Mr. Ma emerged to tell supporters, "We have won."
   With about 90 percent of the ballots counted, election officials said
   Mr. Ma had 51 percent of the vote, compared to about 46 percent for
   Ms.Tsai, who was attempting to become Taiwan's first female leader.
   Ms. Tsai conceded defeat and apologized to supporters at her Democratic
   Progressive Party headquarters.
   The election was being watched carefully in Beijing, where Chinese
   officials were hoping Mr. Ma would remain in office. Relations between
   China and Taiwan hit a low point during a previous period of rule by
   Ms. Tsai's DPP, which is more sympathetic than the Nationalists to
   calls for Taiwan's independence.
   The outcome is also of concern to the United States, which is obliged
   by law to support Taiwan in the event of any hostilities with China.
   Beijing considers Taiwan a breakaway Chinese province and has
   threatened to use military force in the event of a declaration of
   independence.
   Taiwan broke away from the mainland in 1949 at the end of the Chinese
   civil war in which Mao Zedong's communists defeated the nationalists
   under Chiang Kai-shek.

   Some information for this report was provided by AP, AFP.

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