TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The legislature decided Thursday to postpone consideration of referendum reforms that would allow multiple referendum questions to appear on a single ballot.
The KMT and TPP legislative caucuses had been poised to pass the referendum reform and drone legislation on the final day of the current legislative session. During caucus negotiations chaired by Legislative Speaker Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜), the KMT backed down and agreed to postpone the referendum reform, per ETtoday.
KMT Caucus Convener Fu Kun-chi (傅崐萁) said the party had received a request from Central Election Commission Chair You Ying-lung (游盈隆) and would strive to accommodate it, per SETN. He noted that the reforms would not take effect in the 2026 local elections, giving the CEC time to adapt and prepare.
You strongly objected to the opposition’s referendum reform proposal Wednesday, warning that rushed implementation could increase the risk of election-administration errors. He stressed that introducing changes less than 100 days before an election could create more problems than they solve.
The parties’ positions on the reform proposal largely fell along partisan lines. Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) cautioned against the proposal, noting its potential impact on voting and vote counting, per Tai Sounds. DPP legislative caucus official Fan Yun (范雲) echoed Cho’s warning, stressing that “elections could not be treated like experiments,” per Liberty Times.
Among opposition lawmakers, You’s comments drew pushback. KMT lawmaker Lai Shyh-pao (賴士葆) said the proposal was intended to avoid the chaos experienced during the 2018 local elections, when a large number of referendum questions significantly increased voting and vote-counting times, per UDN. He suggested that You’s criticism of the opposition’s reform proposal, without providing a workable alternative, was an attempt to reduce the number of referendum proposals.
TPP Legislative Caucus Convener Chen Ching-lung (陳清龍) rejected You’s characterization of the reform proposal as a “bad idea,” noting that the TPP’s version of the amendment would give the CEC greater flexibility, per FTNN. He argued that You had deliberately disregarded the TPP’s goodwill.
