2025 Taiwanese mass electoral recall campaigns

In 2025, civic groups initiated a recall campaign (Chinese: 大罷免潮, Great Recall Wave) targeting predominantly Kuomintang legislators and mayor of Hsinchu.^[26][27] The elections will be held on July 26 and August 23, 2025.^[28]

Recall Cases of the
11th Legislative Yuan Members

← 2024 26 July 2025 23 August 2025 2028 →
26 seats up for recall; Opposition (KMT and TPP) needs to retain 16 seats for a majority.
Leader Eric Chu Party Kuomintang Last election 52 Recall established 26

2025 Taiwanese mass electoral recall campaigns
大罷免
Propaganda, rallies, marches and demonstrations during Mass Recall Campaigns
Date	Since 1 February 2025 (5 months, 1 week and 4 days)
Location	Taiwan
Caused by	The 11th Legislative Yuan has sparked widespread controversy in its exercise of legislative power and the central government's budget review power, as well as concerns about the Chinese Communist Party's involvement in the politics of Taiwan.
Goals	Recall elected public servants, mainly legislators, and later expanded to mayors and county councilors.
Status	Recall votes across the country will be held on August 23 (2 cases for legislators), July 26 (25 cases, including 1 case for a mayor and 24 cases for legislators) and July 13 (1 case for a county councilor), and another 5 cases for legislators are still in the process of signature verification.
Parties
Recall pan-Blue public servants Leading Groups: Citizens Groups[1][2] Overall organizations: TWACDA[3][4] KMT886[3] Democratic Progressive Party[5] Supporting political parties/organizations: New Power Party Taiwan Statebuilding Party Social Democratic Party Taiwan Solidarity Party Green Party Taiwan Taiwan Obasang Political Equality Party World United Formosans for Independence Taiwan New Constitution Foundation(TNC) [zh] Recall pan-Green public servants Leading Groups: Kuomintang[6][7][8] Citizens Groups[9] Overall organizations: Kuomintang[10] Taiwan People's Party Clean Greenguards[11][12] Supporting political parties: New Party[13][14] Judicial Revolution Party [zh]
Lead figures
Lai Ching-te[15][16] Robert Tsao[4] Puma Shen[4] Bajiong [zh][17][18] Mannam PYC [zh][19][18] Ker Chien-ming[20][21] Eric Chu[22] Huang Kuo-chang[23] Han Kuo-yu[24]
Number
Over 1.3 million signatories[25]

Background

In 2024, after the inauguration of Kuomintang (KMT) and Taiwan People's Party (TPP) legislators in the 11th Legislative Yuan, a series of controversies arose, including the reforms to legislative powers, the passage of three major bills—the Constitutional Court Procedure Act (CCPA), the Public Officials Election and Recall Act, and the Act Governing the Allocation of Government Revenues and Expenditures—as well as budget cuts to the 2025 national budget. These bills would redistribute portions of national budget from the central to local governments, most of which are controlled by the KMT, expand the powers of parliament to the detriment of the executive (DPP-led) and obstruct the functioning of the constitutional court.^[29]

In response, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and civic groups launched the Bluebird Movement in an attempt to block the passage of these controversial bills. However, due to their numerical disadvantage in the Legislative Yuan, they were ultimately unable to prevent the KMT-TPP coalition [zh] from passing all the proposed legislation.^[30][31]

As a result, civic groups began organizing petitions to recall certain KMT legislators. On 4 January, DPP caucus leader Ker Chien-ming publicly called for a large-scale recall of all KMT district legislators.^[32] The first recall vote proposals were submitted on 3 February, the earliest possible day given that only lawmakers who have been in office for at least a year are eligible for recall.^[33] As of 10 March, recall campaigns had been expanded to include 34 of 39 KMT district legislators.^[34] In response, the KMT also initiated counter-recall efforts against fifteen DPP legislators.^[28] The movement eventually expanded to include local government officials, such as mayors and councilors, evolving into a nationwide recall battle between the pan-blue and pan-green camps.^[35]

By June 2025, all recall petitions against Democratic Progressive Party members of the Legislative Yuan had stalled.^[36][37] The only successful recall petition against a DPP-affiliated politician was levied against Nantou County Councilor Chen Yu-ling, and is scheduled for 13 July.^[38][39]

On 20 June 2025, the Central Election Commission scheduled the recall elections for 26 July 2025, and stated that 24 lawmakers and mayor of Hsinchu were subject to recall votes.^[40] On 2 July, the CEC scheduled recalls for two more KMT legislators on 23 August, the same day as a nuclear power referendum is to be held.^[41]

The Central Election Commission placed a moratorium on the gathering, publication, and dissemination of recall polling data from 16 July, and stated that television presentations about the recalls would be aired between 16 and 25 July.^[42][43]