Unprecedented polls are underway in Taiwan as the island votes to decide whether to oust 24 of its parliament lawmakers, who were only elected into office eighteen months ago.

Voters are queuing up in schools, temples, and community centres to cast their ballots on whether to oust about one-fifth of their lawmakers, all from the opposition Nationalist Party, in what is being called the “Great Recall Movement” that could reshape the power balance in the island.

If more than six lawmakers are recalled, it could shift the balance of power in the parliament in favour of Taiwanese president Lai Ching-te, who wants Taiwan to forge a future separate from China, against an opposition largely seen as favouring close ties with Beijing.

A voter on a wheelchair (2nd R) is brought to a booth after arriving at a polling station by ambulance to vote in the recall election in Taipei on July 26, 2025 (AFP via Getty Images)

The poll sees close competition between Taiwan’s major political parties, the DPP, the KMT, and their allies.

Democratic Progressive Party (DPP)

Taiwan’s independence-leaning ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) won last year’s presidential election for an unprecedented third term over a platform that strongly rejected China’s territorial claims over Taiwan. The party came to power by winning 40 per cent of the votes, even though its share of the vote had decreased compared to the previous election.

Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te (C) attends the

Soon after coming to power, Mr Lai, 64, a former doctor who had served as vice-president to Tsai Ing-wen since 2020, said Taiwan would “continue to walk side by side with democracies around the world”.

The DPP-led government has tried to highlight the “Taiwan identity” as something unique and different from that of China. However, many Taiwanese citizens have expressed concern that this approach could continue to put the island under threat from Beijing, which has upped its military exercises around Taiwan in recent years.

Kuomintang (KMT)

Although the DPP won the presidential elections, it was a coalition led by the China-friendly Nationalists, or Kuomintang (KMT), that got enough seats to form a majority bloc in the island’s parliament.

The KMT has been accused by the ruling party of blocking key legislation, especially the defence budget, and of passing legislative changes favouring China, which considers Taiwan a part of its own territory.

Opposition Kuomintang (KMT) legislators gesture during the central government budget for 2025 at Parliament in Taipei on January 21, 2025 (AFP via Getty Images)

It has succeeded in passing three controversial bills and budget cuts to the 2025 national budget, which together were seen as strengthening the powers of parliament at the cost of the executive.

All the lawmakers currently facing recall belong to the KMT, the largest party in the legislature with 52 seats.

With the election commission scheduling recall polls for seven more KMT legislators on 23 August, nearly one-third of all legislative constituencies face the vote, mostly concentrated in the north and urban regions.

Taiwan People’s Party (TPP)

The TPP is a smaller party and a relative newcomer in the race, gathering strong support among young people disillusioned by the ruling and main opposition parties.

It controls eight of the Taiwanese parliament’s 113 seats and works in a coalition with the KMT to wield control over the legislature.

Beijing

The relations between Taiwan and mainland China have been central to the recall mandate.

Many supporters of the recall movement point to close ties between some KMT officials and leaders in mainland China.

A placard reading

In April, some KMT legislators travelled to the mainland and met with Beijing’s chief theoretician Wang Huning, a member of the Politburo Standing Committee, raising concerns that KMT leaders could be taking orders from Beijing.

Indian police arrest man running ‘fake embassy’

NEW DELHI: Police in India have arrested a man accused of running a fake embassy from a rented house near New Delhi and duping job seekers out of money with promises of overseas employment.

Harsh Vardhan Jain, 47, was operating an “illegal West Arctic embassy by renting a house” in Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh, which neigbhours the capital, local police said.

Jain, according to police, claimed to be the ambassador of fictional nations “like West Arctica, Saborga, Poulvia, Lodonia.”

He allegedly used vehicles with fake diplomatic plates and shared doctored photos of himself with Indian leaders to bolster his claims.

“His main activities involved acting as a broker to secure work in foreign countries for companies and private individuals, as well as operating a hawala (money transfer) racket through shell companies,” the police said in a statement following his arrest earlier this week.

He is also accused of money laundering.

During a raid on Jain’s property, police said they recovered $53,500 in cash in addition to doctored passports and forged documents bearing stamps of India’s foreign ministry.

AFP was unable to reach Jain or his representatives for comment.

Westarctica, cited by the police as one of the countries Jain claimed to be representing, is a US-registered nonprofit “dedicated to studying and preserving this vast, magnificent, desolate region” of Western Antarctica.

In a statement, it said it had appointed Jain as its “Honorary Consul to India” after he had made a “generous donation.”

“He was never granted the position or authority of ambassador,” it added.

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Taiwan votes to decide whether to oust lawmakers from China-friendly party

toggle caption ChiangYing-ying/AP

TAIPEI, Taiwan — Taiwanese voted in a recall election Saturday to determine whether to oust about one-fifth of their lawmakers, all from the opposition Nationalist Party, a vote that could potentially reshape the power balance in the self-ruled island’s legislature.

The independence-leaning ruling Democratic Progressive Party won last year’s presidential election, but the China-friendly Nationalists, also known as the KMT, and the smaller Taiwan People’s Party have enough seats to form a majority bloc.

Those who support removing the 24 lawmakers are angry that the KMT and its allies have blocked key legislation, especially the defense budget, and passed controversial changes that are seen as diminishing the power of the executive and favoring China, which considers the island its own territory.

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The opposition parties’ actions sparked concerns among some Taiwanese about the island’s democratic integrity and its ability to deter Chinese military threats, leading to the recall campaigns. The scale of the recall elections is unprecedented, with another seven KMT lawmakers facing similar votes on Aug. 23.

But the KMT alleged the ruling party was resorting to political retaliation after it lost the legislative majority, saying the recalls were undermining and challenging Taiwan’s democratic system.

The KMT holds 52 seats, while the ruling DPP holds 51 seats. For the DPP to secure a legislative majority, at least six KMT lawmakers would need to be ousted, and the ruling party would need to win the by-elections, which must be held within three months of the announcement of results.

For the recall to pass, more than a quarter of eligible voters in the electoral district must vote in favor of it, and the total number of supporters must exceed those voting against.

If KMT loses its seats in the recall elections, the party can put up new candidates for the by-elections and may be able to win back the seats.

The poll closed at 4 p.m. local time, with preliminary results expected on Saturday night. Taiwan’s Central Election Commission will announce the official results on Aug. 1.

The elections have intensified tensions between those backing the status quo and those favoring improved ties with Beijing. Critics accuse China-friendly politicians of compromising Taiwan and take issue with their meetings with mainland Chinese politicians. But these Taiwanese politicians claim their connections are vital for dialogue given Beijing’s refusal to interact with the DPP.

When asked about the recall election, China’s Taiwan Affairs Office spokesperson Zhu Fenglian said in June that since the administration of Taiwan President Lai Ching-te came into power, it has sought to achieve “one-party dominance” and practiced dictatorship under the guise of democracy, state broadcaster CCTV reported. The office is a branch of China’s ruling Communist Party government, which itself maintains a strict one-party rule.

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Zhu said that Lai’s government has spared no effort in suppressing opposition parties and those who supported the development of cross-strait relations.

Taiwan’s mainland affairs council said Wednesday that the Chinese authorities and state media had tried to blatantly interfere with the vote.