Taiwan’s Moderate New Leader Troubles China

Tsai Ing-wen became Taiwan’s first female President on Jan. 16, winning 56% of the vote and a parliamentary majority for her Beijing-skeptic Democratic Progressive Party (DPP). The party’s victory, on a self-governing island that China still considers a rogue province, may complicate relations with Beijing:

QUIET REFORMER

The former law professor, who studied at Cornell and the London School of Economics as well as in Taiwan, is more technocrat than tub thumper and considers German Chancellor Angela Merkel a role model. An experienced negotiator in trade policy and diplomatic relations, Tsai courted young voters by promising new and more innovative jobs, backing same-sex marriage–and by showing off her two cats on the trail.

CHINA TENSIONS

Cross-strait relations may become strained under Tsai, given the DPP’s long-term pledge to break away from China. But the new President resolved to “maintain the status quo” with Beijing, even as she pushes for greater economic freedoms. China, which has long said it would bring Taiwan under control by force if necessary, urged Tsai in state media to drop “hallucinations” about sovereignty.

ECONOMIC FOCUS

Domestic issues dominated the election, as GDP growth slowed in 2015. In order to bolster the economy, Tsai has pledged to strengthen trade with the rest of Asia and risk China’s ire by pushing for Taiwan to join the Trans-Pacific Partnership with 12 other Pacific Rim nations. “Taiwan needs a new model,” she told TIME in 2015.

–JULIA ZORTHIAN