Party’s Issue Competence and Electoral Decisions in Taiwan’s 2012 and 2016 Presidential Elections

Abstract

Employing the theory of issue ownership, this chapter finds that voters’ concerns about Taiwan’s increasing economic dependence on China, together with a series of domestic events, have altered voter’s perceptions of the KMT’s issue competence, particularly in managing cross-Strait relations. This shifting perception of issue competence in part explained the KMT’s electoral misfortune in 2016. However, partisanship and candidate attributes continued to play a major role in the 2012 and 2016 presidential elections. While the role of issue ownership and perceived issue competence cannot be ignored, their effects on Taiwanese citizens’ electoral decisions may vary from election to election.