The election of the president and vice president of Taiwan (Chinese: 中華民國總統、副總統選舉) is a universaldirect election through secret vote by the citizens of Taiwan (ROC) in the Free Area. ROC presidents are elected by relative majority (plurality), meaning the candidate with the most votes wins without a runoff requirement.[1][2] The most recent election took place on January 13, 2024.
The Presidential and Vice Presidential Election and Recall Act[3] states that a candidate for president or vice president must be a citizen of the Republic of China, at least 40 years old, and a resident of Taiwan for a period of no less than 15 years with a physical presence of no less than 6 consecutive months.
The following persons shall not be registered as candidates for the president:
People who hold foreign nationality or who hold residency of the People's Republic of China
People who have restored their nationality or acquired their nationality by naturalization
The president and vice president are nominated on a joint ticket. Political parties which have gained at least 5% of the votes in the last presidential or legislative election may nominate a set of candidates directly. For example, during the 2012 elections, only the Kuomintang and Democratic Progressive Party were qualified to nominate candidates through this rule. Alternatively, candidates may be nominated by a petition signed by eligible voters numbering no less than 1.5% of the electors in the last legislative election. (This equaled 252,848 signatures for the 2012 election.)[3]
