TAIPEI -- Tsai Ing-wen's sweeping victory in Taiwan's presidential election vindicated her strong stance against China, but also risks provoking Beijing into stepping up its campaign of pressure against an island it views as a wayward province.
Tsai, who portrays herself as the best defender of democracy in Taiwan, received the highest number of votes for any candidate since the island's first direct presidential election in 1996. In her campaign, she played up Beijing's crackdown on Hong Kong protesters and the perceived threat to Taiwan's hard-fought democracy.
