Taipei: All 24 lawmakers from Taiwan’s main opposition party, the Kuomintang (KMT), faced recall votes on Saturday and successfully retained their positions. This outcome allows the KMT, along with the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP), to maintain their opposition control over the Legislature.

According to Focus Taiwan, the Central Election Commission reported that the recall efforts against the 24 KMT lawmakers, elected in January 2024, and Hsinchu Mayor Kao Hung-an did not meet the necessary thresholds to pass. Although seven of the recall votes garnered enough support to surpass the 25 percent threshold of eligible voters required, they ultimately failed because more voters opposed the recall than supported it.

Among the seven lawmakers who faced significant recall efforts were Hualien Legislator and KMT caucus whip Fu Kun-chi, Taipei Legislators Wang Hung-wei, Lee Yen-hsiu, and Hsu Chiao-hsin, New Taipei Legislator Yeh Yuan-chih, Taichung lawmaker Lo Ting-wei, and Hsinchu lawmaker Cheng Cheng-chien. In the remaining 18 recall cases, the pro-recall votes did not meet the threshold, and opposition to the recall prevailed.

This result marked a setback for the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and civic groups advocating for the recalls. They sought to unseat KMT lawmakers they accused of being pro-China and obstructing government policies. Had 12 KMT lawmakers been successfully recalled, the DPP would have gained immediate control of the Legislative Yuan.

KMT Chairman Eric Chu hailed the outcome as a “big victory for Taiwan’s people,” while TPP Chairman Huang Kuo-chang called for President Lai Ching-te to apologize and for the Cabinet, led by Premier Cho Jung-tai, to resign for a government reshuffle. In response, DPP Secretary-General Lin Yu-chang acknowledged the results and stated that the party would reflect on the public’s sentiments.