You Ying-lung: CEC Faces 6 Challenges; Using Nationality Act for Mainland Spouses' Political Rights Is Far-fetched
You Ying-lung, the newly appointed chairman of the Central Election Commission (CEC), stated that the CEC faces six major challenges, including the power to veto referendum proposals from the Legislative Yuan and the contentious issue of political rights for mainland spouses, which he believes is inadequately addressed by the Nationality Act.
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- 📰 Published: April 27, 2026 at 12:12
- 🔍 Collected: April 27, 2026 at 12:31 (19 min after Published)
- 🤖 AI Analyzed: April 28, 2026 at 02:44 (14h 12m after Collected)
Central News Agency
(Central News Agency reporter Kao Hua-chien, Taipei 27th) You Ying-lung, the newly appointed chairman of the Central Election Commission (CEC), said today that the CEC faces six major challenges. These include whether it has the right to veto referendum proposals put forward by the Legislative Yuan, which is a highly contentious and open question. Regarding the political rights of mainland spouses, former Taiwan People's Party legislator Li Chen-hsiu is by no means the last case; unless the Constitution and laws are appropriately adapted and amended, using the Nationality Act at this stage is still far-fetched and highly controversial.
You Ying-lung said that facing two major tasks and six major challenges, they must be vigilant. "We are full of confidence" because Taiwan has unwavering democratic values and highly efficient electoral services. He wants to give the CEC a new positioning: the CEC is the "guardian of Taiwan's democratic elections."
The Central Election Commission held the handover ceremony between acting chairman Wu Rong-hui and new chairman You Ying-lung, supervised by Executive Yuan Secretary-General Chang Tun-han.
You Ying-lung said in his address that he thanked President Lai Ching-te, Premier Cho Jung-tai, and the legislators for their support and trust. He vowed not to let down expectations and to do his utmost to build an absolutely neutral, fair, objective, impartial, and professional CEC with a spirit of selflessness.
He stated that during his tenure, at least two major tasks must be completed: this year's local elections and the 2028 presidential and legislative elections. Specifically, with the voting day for this year's nine-in-one local elections exactly seven months away, there is no time to waste, and they need to accelerate their pace.
You Ying-lung also stated that the CEC is currently facing six major challenges. First, the Legislative Yuan has revised laws to restore referendums to be held alongside major elections. This is welcomed by mainstream public opinion in Taiwan, but many are concerned about interference with electoral operations. Taiwan has simultaneously implemented national referendums and presidential elections since 2004, accumulating four valuable experiences with referendums tied to major elections. The future focus will be on smoothly and successfully managing electoral operations under the system where referendums are tied to major elections.
You Ying-lung said the second challenge is absentee voting. With the integration of various types of elections in Taiwan, each election now involves at least two different types of elections, which is very different from the past. As the electoral system fundamentally changes, societal pressure for implementing absentee voting continues to rise, leading to differing opinions among political parties. He affirmed that absentee voting is progressive thinking. How to form a consensus through broader and deeper rational discussion in the future and implement it in people's political lives is an important challenge.
He pointed out that the third is to appropriately handle referendum proposals put forward by the Legislative Yuan. The CEC rejected the Legislative Yuan's anti-death penalty referendum proposal last May while passing the referendum on extending the operation of the Third Nuclear Power Plant. From a certain perspective, this is a quasi "Marshall Moment," referring to the establishment of the U.S. federal constitutional system of three powers by John Marshall, the 4th Chief Justice of the U.S., in 1803.
You Ying-lung stated that last year's referendum proposals from the Legislative Yuan were not constitutional amendments or territorial changes at the constitutional level, which naturally caused an uproar. The opposition parties have not yet swallowed this. However, the CEC is an independent agency and the competent authority for the Referendum Act. "Whether it has the power to veto referendum proposals put forward by the Legislative Yuan is currently a highly contentious and open question." How to properly handle referendum proposals from the Legislative Yuan in the future and prevent the CEC from becoming a rubber stamp is a severe challenge.
He said the fourth challenge is the controversy surrounding political rights for mainland spouses. With Li Chen-hsiu expelled from the Taiwan People's Party, the controversy over political rights for mainland spouses has subsided, and many are relieved. However, Li Chen-hsiu is by no means the last case. Unless the Constitution and relevant laws are appropriately adapted and amended, which requires joint efforts from the government and the Legislative Yuan to fundamentally address, "after all, cross-strait relations have their particularity, and using the Nationality Act to address the issue of political rights for mainland spouses at this stage is indeed far-fetched and highly controversial."
From a positive perspective, You Ying-lung said, the Li Chen-hsiu case highlights imperfections in the constitutional and legal system, which is also a major challenge for the future.
He also said the fifth challenge is the issue of deepfake messages influencing elections in the age of AI and the internet. How to respond to this in this year's nine-in-one elections is a topic that must not be ignored.
You Ying-lung pointed out that the sixth challenge is China's interference in elections. It is no exaggeration to say that the Chinese Communist Party's interference in elections is a constant, not a variable. This year, China has even openly established a special working group to respond to Taiwan's local elections, directly supervised by the CCP Central Leading Group for Taiwan Affairs. Faced with the new cross-strait situation, vigilance must be heightened, and caution must not be relaxed. (Editor: Wan Shu-chang) 1150427
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(Central News Agency reporter Kao Hua-chien, Taipei 27th) You Ying-lung, the newly appointed chairman of the Central Election Commission (CEC), said today that the CEC faces six major challenges. These include whether it has the right to veto referendum proposals put forward by the Legislative Yuan, which is a highly contentious and open question. Regarding the political rights of mainland spouses, former Taiwan People's Party legislator Li Chen-hsiu is by no means the last case; unless the Constitution and laws are appropriately adapted and amended, using the Nationality Act at this stage is still far-fetched and highly controversial.
You Ying-lung said that facing two major tasks and six major challenges, they must be vigilant. "We are full of confidence" because Taiwan has unwavering democratic values and highly efficient electoral services. He wants to give the CEC a new positioning: the CEC is the "guardian of Taiwan's democratic elections."
The Central Election Commission held the handover ceremony between acting chairman Wu Rong-hui and new chairman You Ying-lung, supervised by Executive Yuan Secretary-General Chang Tun-han.
You Ying-lung said in his address that he thanked President Lai Ching-te, Premier Cho Jung-tai, and the legislators for their support and trust. He vowed not to let down expectations and to do his utmost to build an absolutely neutral, fair, objective, impartial, and professional CEC with a spirit of selflessness.
He stated that during his tenure, at least two major tasks must be completed: this year's local elections and the 2028 presidential and legislative elections. Specifically, with the voting day for this year's nine-in-one local elections exactly seven months away, there is no time to waste, and they need to accelerate their pace.
You Ying-lung also stated that the CEC is currently facing six major challenges. First, the Legislative Yuan has revised laws to restore referendums to be held alongside major elections. This is welcomed by mainstream public opinion in Taiwan, but many are concerned about interference with electoral operations. Taiwan has simultaneously implemented national referendums and presidential elections since 2004, accumulating four valuable experiences with referendums tied to major elections. The future focus will be on smoothly and successfully managing electoral operations under the system where referendums are tied to major elections.
You Ying-lung said the second challenge is absentee voting. With the integration of various types of elections in Taiwan, each election now involves at least two different types of elections, which is very different from the past. As the electoral system fundamentally changes, societal pressure for implementing absentee voting continues to rise, leading to differing opinions among political parties. He affirmed that absentee voting is progressive thinking. How to form a consensus through broader and deeper rational discussion in the future and implement it in people's political lives is an important challenge.
He pointed out that the third is to appropriately handle referendum proposals put forward by the Legislative Yuan. The CEC rejected the Legislative Yuan's anti-death penalty referendum proposal last May while passing the referendum on extending the operation of the Third Nuclear Power Plant. From a certain perspective, this is a quasi "Marshall Moment," referring to the establishment of the U.S. federal constitutional system of three powers by John Marshall, the 4th Chief Justice of the U.S., in 1803.
You Ying-lung stated that last year's referendum proposals from the Legislative Yuan were not constitutional amendments or territorial changes at the constitutional level, which naturally caused an uproar. The opposition parties have not yet swallowed this. However, the CEC is an independent agency and the competent authority for the Referendum Act. "Whether it has the power to veto referendum proposals put forward by the Legislative Yuan is currently a highly contentious and open question." How to properly handle referendum proposals from the Legislative Yuan in the future and prevent the CEC from becoming a rubber stamp is a severe challenge.
He said the fourth challenge is the controversy surrounding political rights for mainland spouses. With Li Chen-hsiu expelled from the Taiwan People's Party, the controversy over political rights for mainland spouses has subsided, and many are relieved. However, Li Chen-hsiu is by no means the last case. Unless the Constitution and relevant laws are appropriately adapted and amended, which requires joint efforts from the government and the Legislative Yuan to fundamentally address, "after all, cross-strait relations have their particularity, and using the Nationality Act to address the issue of political rights for mainland spouses at this stage is indeed far-fetched and highly controversial."
From a positive perspective, You Ying-lung said, the Li Chen-hsiu case highlights imperfections in the constitutional and legal system, which is also a major challenge for the future.
He also said the fifth challenge is the issue of deepfake messages influencing elections in the age of AI and the internet. How to respond to this in this year's nine-in-one elections is a topic that must not be ignored.
You Ying-lung pointed out that the sixth challenge is China's interference in elections. It is no exaggeration to say that the Chinese Communist Party's interference in elections is a constant, not a variable. This year, China has even openly established a special working group to respond to Taiwan's local elections, directly supervised by the CCP Central Leading Group for Taiwan Affairs. Faced with the new cross-strait situation, vigilance must be heightened, and caution must not be relaxed. (Editor: Wan Shu-chang) 1150427
Stand with facts, every sponsorship you make is a force to protect press freedom.
Download the CNA 'First-hand News' APP to stay updated with the latest news.
Text, images, and audio/video on this website may not be reproduced, publicly broadcast, or publicly transmitted and used without authorization.