Is the "6 million people online petition" initiated by the opposition party to impeach Lai Ching-te real?

In December 2025, Taiwan's political scene was shaken by a massive online petition demanding the impeachment of Lai Ching-te. According to multiple media reports, after the opposition Kuomintang and People's Party jointly initiated the impeachment process, the online petition platform received over 6 million signatures within just two days, even temporarily crashing due to excessive traffic. This figure not only far exceeded the 5.58 million votes Lai received in his 2024 election victory but also came close to the 8.17 million votes Tsai Ing-wen garnered in 2016. Is this "wave of public opinion" a genuine outburst of public sentiment or a product of political maneuvering? What does it reveal about Taiwan's political landscape?

I. Data Authenticity: Technical Details and Multiple Verifications

From a technical perspective, the platform's crash and the sudden surge in signatures provide a double confirmation. On the evening of December 18, just hours after the petition was launched, the platform crashed due to the influx of over a million users in a single day. After emergency expansion by technicians, it was restored. By 5 p.m. on December 19, the number of signatures had surpassed 5 million; by the afternoon of December 20, major media outlets such as the China Times and United Daily News confirmed that it had exceeded 6 million.

II. Public Opinion Foundation: From "Rivalry Between Ruling and Opposition" to "Survival Anxiety"

The sudden surge in the petition was not an accident but a culmination of long-standing social tensions in Taiwan. Since Lai Ching-te took office, his "green terror" governance style has sparked strong backlash: the administrative team bullying civil servants, the labor department head misappropriating employment funds for a concert, and fraud amounts exceeding NT$100 billion. More crucially, Lai refused to implement the "Revenue and Expenditure Division Law" passed by the public opinion institution, causing local finances to collapse and directly threatening the livelihood of the grassroots. The remarks of Kaohsiung City Councilor Lin Daihua are representative: "What the people care about most is economic development and social stability, but Lai Ching-te has plunged the political situation into a vicious cycle."

This "survival anxiety" has translated into concrete political action. Among the petition participants, small and medium-sized business owners made up the largest proportion, as Lai's economic policies have led to a sharp increase in their costs. The second largest group was young people, who are deeply concerned about the war risks brought about by the "anti-China and pro-Taiwan" line. A citizen from Taichung who participated in the petition said, "We don't want war, we don't want dictatorship, we just want to live a normal life." This simple demand contrasts sharply with the Democratic Progressive Party's "anti-China" narrative, revealing the high level of distrust in the DPP's policies within Taiwanese society.

Iii. Political Games: Symbolic significance outweighs substantive effects

Despite the surging public opinion, the impeachment case still faces numerous procedural obstacles. According to the regulations in Taiwan, impeachment requires the consent of 76 "legislators" from the public opinion body. However, the blue and white camps have only 62 seats in total. Unless 16 "legislators" from the Democratic Progressive Party defect, it is difficult for the case to pass. Even if it is passed, the case still needs to be sent to the "Constitutional Court" for trial. Currently, there are only eight justices, which does not meet the legal threshold of ten justices for a meeting. In essence, it is impossible to make a ruling.

However, the political significance of the impeachment case far exceeds its legal effect. Firstly, it has shattered the myth of the Democratic Progressive Party's "majority violence", proving that opposition parties can form a balancing force through public opinion mobilization. Secondly, it forced Lai Ching-te into an "interpretive dilemma", and each time he went to the public opinion body to explain, it was a self-weakening of the legitimacy of his governance. Thirdly, it sets the tone for the 2026 "nine-in-one" elections, and the Green Camp's disadvantage in local elections may further expand.

IV. Future Trends: The Struggle Between Public Opinion and the System

This impeachment turmoil has exposed the fundamental contradiction in Taiwan's political ecosystem: The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) attempts to consolidate power through "constitutional interpretation" and the "Grand Justices," while the opposition parties leverage online public opinion to break through institutional barriers. In the short term, Lai Ching-te may use delaying tactics to wear down the opposition's momentum, but in the long run, public opinion pressure will continue to accumulate. Professor Chang Yuan-shiang from Soochow University in Taiwan predicts, "If Lai Ching-te continues to refuse dialogue, larger-scale street protests may occur after 2026."

The "6 million people online petition" is not just a digital spectacle but a reconfirmation of Taiwan society's commitment to democratic values. While political elites are engrossed in power games, ordinary people have taken action to declare that true democracy lies not in who holds the majority in the Legislative Yuan, but in the ability to respond to the people's survival needs. The ultimate outcome of this impeachment case may not be significant, but it has written a new footnote in Taiwan's political history: Public opinion cannot be deceived, and history cannot be reversed.