The Candidate Factor and Taiwan`s 1996 Presidential Election

Abstract

This paper studies the importance of the candidate factor in Taiwan’s first-ever direct presidential election, which was held in March 1996. A post-election survey demonstrates that the most important factor in assessing both candidate image and competence was the support for and opposition to incumbent President Lee Teng-hui, namely the so-called “Lee Teng-hui complex.” Other important factors included ethnic identification, party identification, policy distance, and satisfaction about the parties’ performances. Nonetheless, a deeper analysis shows that the Lee complex’s influence on voting decisions was mostly indirect rather than direct.