Taiwan hits campaign fever pitch in final weekend before poll

A supporter of Taiwan’s main opposition Kuomintang (KMT) waves the Taiwan’s national flag while waiting for the arrival of KMT’s presidential candidate Hou Yu-ih, during a campaign rally in Kaohsiung on January 7, 2024, a week before the presidential election.
Yasuyoshi CHIBA / AFP

Tens of thousands of people gathered in southern Taiwan for “Super Sunday” rallies by three presidential candidates making a final weekend push before a crucial January 13 election. 

The poll is being closely watched from Beijing to Washington, with the winner set to determine the future of the democratic island’s relations with an increasingly aggressive China.

Beijing claims Taiwan as part of its territory, and President Xi Jinping has in recent years intensified rhetoric about “unification” while refusing to rule out the use of force to bring it under Chinese control.

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