Looking at President Tsai’s face and the way she carries herself, you would never know that she is fighting for her grip on power both on the government of Taiwan and within her own political party as the 2020 presidential election looms. Tsai has long been recognized for her steely countenance and academic speaking style. She has relied on her quiet strength to become the first female president of the Republic of China (ROC) and endure intense pressure from the People’s Republic of China (PRC).
Tsai’s mannerisms are reminiscent of the way Hillary Clinton would hold herself while she was running for office in 2008 and in 2016—as if she were prepared for a battle. Indeed, Clinton was in a battle each time, not only against opposition party members, but also within her own party. Throughout her term, Tsai has attempted to appease both those in the “deep green” camp, the more hawkish pro-independence factions, as well as those on the progressive side of her party, without losing the independent or centrist voters of Taiwan. It is an impossible balancing act that has left her criticized by all—much like Clinton in 2016.
Afraid of losing progressives within the Democratic Party, Clinton withdrew her support of the Trans-Pacific Partnership, which then lost her the support of centrist, pro-business Democrats. Fearing the loss of establishment Democrats, Clinton then pulled back from criticizing big banks, or tackling crushing student debt. It left Democrats on both sides unhappy. In 2016, Tsai began her presidency campaign with a socially progressive platform in which she stated her personal support for same-sex marriage. Then the Tsai administration, once it was in office, dragged its feet for two years, acting as if its hands were tied when in fact, the Constitutional Court of Taiwan had ruled it unconstitutional to stipulate that marriage is only between a man and a woman in 2017. It was not until last month, in May 2019, that Taiwan’s parliament passed a law making same-sex marriage legal (though not completely equal). Tsai’s lack of action on progressive topics eroded her popularity among young people, many of whom had participated in the Sunflower Movement, and who helped propel the DPP into power in 2016. Meanwhile, socially conservative DPP members were angry about the moderate stance Tsai was taking vis-à-vis the PRC and her support of LGBT rights.
Criticisms of Tsai began before she even took office. The PRC made sexist comments about Tsai’s ability to lead based on her marital status and gender, while the KMT criticized her as they normally would a DPP rival, saying she ruined Taiwan’s economy by “provoking” China. By 2017 her approval ratings among the general public had plummeted.
However, the attacks from within the DPP itself, and the challenge for the presidency by Premier William Lai, her own cabinet member, were unforeseen threats that harken back to the 2016 U.S. Presidential campaigns of Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders. Clinton eventually won the Democratic nomination (a controversy in and of itself) and went on to face a populist businessman with zero experience in public office in the general election, whose background mirrors that of potential KMT candidate Terry Gou.
There are many reasons why Hillary Clinton eventually lost the 2016 election that are unique and not applicable to President Tsai’s current predicament, and Donald Trump was propelled by social forces in the United States that do have some distinctions from Taiwan’s emerging populism. That being said, there was an underlying issue that dogged Clinton, and is similarly dogging Tsai— misogyny.
Misogyny in politics
After the 2016 election of Tsai Ing-wen, Taiwan was praised around the world for electing its first female president, and for its high number of women in political office. As it stands, 38% of representative in Taiwan’s legislative body, the Legislative Yuan (LY), are women. In contrast, 23.7% of members of the U.S. Congress are women in 2019–a historic high for the US.
However, the treatment of Tsai since she took office, and the lack of other women in politics who are anywhere near her in terms of power or public recognition, imply that social attitudes toward women in leadership positions in Taiwan remain conservative. Tsai herself has never claimed to be feminist, nor has she been claimed by feminists in Taiwan, who have criticized her for her actions such as appointing a predominantly male cabinet. In the history of the vice presidency of Taiwan, there has ever only been one female vice president, Annette Lu. It is true that even having one previous vice president who was a woman is already a global rarity and an accomplishment, but considering it happened nearly 20 years ago, one must pause to consider, what could be impeding the success of women within politics in Taiwan? Where are the future female successors to President Tsai it in the landscape of Taiwan’s politics?
Never has Taiwan had a female President of the LY, and there have been three female Chairpersons of the DPP, two of whom were interim chairs. There have been two for the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT), one of whom was an interim chair. Currently, no women from the DPP have been elected at the county or municipal executive level, which do not have a gender quota such as in the LY. Of the 22 municipal-level seats, seven women from the KMT were elected into office in 2018 which is about 31 percent. In fact, the DPP nominated only two women to run in the local government elections in 2018. Of the 43 legislators in the LY who are women, can it really be true that not a single one is qualified to lead either the LY or their parties? Or is it rather, that their fellow party members do not believe they are fit to lead?
This brings us to the DPP presidential primary underway now, between President Tsai and her fellow DPP member, William Lai. If we examine what Lai brings to the table in comparison to President Tsai in terms of policy, it’s hard to discern a major difference between Tsai and Lai. Lai is known for being more pro-business, and is socially less progressive. He has been more outspoken than Tsai on supporting Taiwan’s independence, a luxury that the actual head of state does not have, especially when considering how the U.S. perception of Tsai in 2011 as being “pro-independent” was potentially a factor in her losing the election.
It would be too bold a claim, and too difficult to prove, that the main reason Tsai is being challenged by her own party member for the presidential election is because she is a woman. However, gender is a factor, mostly unspoken, in the difficulty Tsai has had maintaining control and popularity within the DPP and among the broader public. It is important to note that never before has an incumbent president in Taiwan been challenged by a fellow party-member. It is also important to highlight that women in the DPP have not been promoted within the party when there is no quota forcing them to do so. Either there are not enough women within the DPP deemed qualified, or qualified women are being passed over.
In a New York Times article about Ben Rhodes’ memoir based on his years in the Obama administration, Rhodes is quoted, “when you distilled it, stripped out the racism and misogyny, we’d run against Hillary eight years ago with the same message Trump had used: She’s part of a corrupt establishment that can’t be trusted to bring change.” Although the Obama campaign did not weaponize Clinton’s gender in their campaign, it probably played a role in their ability to persuade Americans to vote for a junior Senator from Illinois over a former First Lady. Women, anywhere in the world, can’t lead if no one will trust us to do so.
All views expressed here are the author’s alone and not representative of The National Bureau of Asian Research (NBR).
(Feature photo of Hillary Clinton by Gage Skidmore, CC BY-SA 2.0, of Tsai Ing-wen from the Presidential Office of Taiwan)
