Taiwan’s College Campus Reacts to US Election

According to a survey by British pollster YouGov, of eight countries in the Asia Pacific surveyed, Taiwan is the only country that prefers President Donald Trump over his rival Joe Biden in the upcoming US presidential election. 42% of Taiwanese respondents support President Trump as opposed to former Vice President Joe Biden, who has only 30% of Taiwanese support.

To understand this phenomenon on a more personal level, I interviewed faculty and students at National Chengchi University in Taipei. 

A student from the law department views the results from the YouGov poll through a geopolitical lens. The student, who asked to remain anonymous, says that ever since the election of President Tsai Ing-wen of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), China has been antagonistic towards Tsai and her party, as they do not agree with China’s that Taiwan is part of China. Proponents of Tsai and Taiwan’s independence see China’s goal of “unifying” Taiwan as a constant threat, with China ratcheting up military harassment near Taiwan in recent months. This student observes that people in Taiwan favor Trump, because the Trump Administration has made its support of Taiwan very visible, as well as criticized China heavily, like blaming China for their late notice of the novel coronavirus to the World Health Organization (WTO). Compared to Joe Biden who has not spoken up for Taiwan so visibly (at least until recently), Trump is seen as a defender of Taiwan’s interests and as someone who will stand up against China.

The student further observes that Taiwan’s domestic media portrays Trump as a bold and daring enough leader to speak up against China, something past US leaders have tried to avoid doing. On the other hand, this student also knows that Trump is notorious for telling lies and thinks that the Taiwanese media paints a lopsided picture of Trump. He does not regard Trump as a traditional Republican, but as an opportunist, who is willing to say and do whatever aligns with his own personal interests.

Annie Lin, a double major in English and philosophy, also has mixed views on the US election. She does not think Trump is ethical enough of a  candidate for the most powerful public office of the United States. She thinks that he has responded poorly to racial tensions and to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Lin thinks that the Taiwanese public supports him because of his tough rhetoric against China, his administration’s support for a bilateral business deal with Taiwan, and arms sales to Taiwan. She thinks that therefore Trump and the Republican party may be more beneficial to Taiwan, as opposed to Biden, whose views on Taiwan are less clear. She believes, however, that Trump’s support is conditional and could change in a split second. Lin said she does not exactly support Biden either. 

A law professor at the university, who has conducted research on the US electoral system, thinks that generally speaking it is the business and academic communities of Taiwan that are devoted to understanding how the 2020 US election will affect Taiwan in areas of national security and trade agreements.  

The professor, who also asked to remain anonymous, has noted that some university students follow the ongoing developments and result of the US election but often follow them through only one media outlet, which oftentimes is liberal-leaning, such as The New York Times, The Washington Post, or CNN. The professor worries that this prevents the students from getting a broader perspective of the US political landscape. With regards to the media, the professor also notes that some students place too much credibility in anonymous comments by simply assuming people who speak anonymously have less reason to give false or misleading information. 

Overall, the professor has noticed that the Taiwanese are fearful that Taiwan will become the next Hong Kong. The professor explains that Trump’s anti-China rhetoric provides reassurance to some Taiwanese, even though it may very well be superficial.  

Dr. T.J. Sellari, Assistant Professor of English, is focused on the uncertainty of Trump’s policies. Dr. Sellari strongly believes that it is rather naive to believe Trump to be a genuine friend of Taiwan. As an American citizen who has lived and taught university students in Taiwan for many years, Dr. Sellari has tried to convince  his students that Trump would sell out Taiwan in a heartbeat if it would benefit him. Dr. Sellari has also noticed that many of his students are frustrated with  the future of Taiwan as the island nation finds itself being pushed and shoved by the decisions of the two most powerful countries. 

(Feature photo of Donald Trump and Joe Biden, both by Gage Skidmore, CC BY-SA 2.0)