The major losses of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) in November’s local elections was the top news of last year. That is according to the Chang Yung-Fa Foundation, which conducted a poll of over 25,000 online voters.
In November’s elections, the DPP lost control over several cities and counties. The biggest upset was in Kaohsiung, where the party conceded its 20-year long control to Han Kuo-yu, a charismatic candidate from the opposition Kuomintang (KMT).
Other top news items included the derailment of an express train at the end of October that killed 18 and injured over 190 and the deadly earthquake in Hualien in early 2018. Controversy over the selection of a president of National Taiwan University was a story that rumbled in the background throughout 2018 and eventually led to the resignation of the education minister at the end of the year.
Another top story was the severing of diplomatic ties between Taiwan and El Salvador.
In terms of international news, online voters cited the landmark meeting between Moon Jae-in and Kim Jong-un, the leaders of North and South Korea, as the leading story of the year.
