Tsai Ing-wen: Taiwan's "Tsainami"

On May 20, Tsai Ing-wen, leader of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), will be inaugurated as president of the Republic of China. Five months prior, Tsai led the DPP to a landmark victory, for the first time in Taiwan's history usurping the Kuomintang (KMT) as the dominant party in the legislature. Tsai is also the first female leader since the formidable eighth-century Empress Wu Zetian to lead a Chinese-majority nation.

Tsai, who turns 60 this year, is part of a growing number of women to stand at the helm of a country. Unlike many of her contemporaries, though, she does not come from a political background. Having worked in academia prior to her entry into politics, in this respect Tsai is similar to Angela Merkel, whom she often cites as an influential inspiration.

Tsai's initial rise to political prominence came with her 2000 appointment as the chairwoman of the Mainland Affairs Council, effectively making her Taiwan's top negotiator with Beijing. She was elected to the legislature after joining the DPP in 2004. In 2008, a low point for the party, she resuscitated its reputation and stability in her role as the party's leader. Next, she suffered two major defeats to KMT opponents, first in the 2010 election for the position of New Taipei City mayor, then in the neck-and-neck 2012 election for Taiwan's presidency. That she returned for a second, and ultimately successful, try at the latter speaks volumes of Tsai's tenaciousness and humility.

女性領導力──蔡英文

五月二十日，民主進步黨主席蔡英文將就任為中華民國的總統。五個月前，蔡英文率領民進黨達成里程碑的勝利，在台灣史上首度自國民黨手中取得立法院多數黨的地位。蔡英文也是自八世紀令人敬畏的女皇帝武則天以來，在華人為多數的國家裡所出現的第一位女性領導人。
今年滿六十歲的蔡英文，是為數漸多的女性國家掌權者之一。不過，和同時代其他女性領導者不同的是，她並非出身政治背景。踏入政壇前，蔡英文在學術界工作，因此在這方面她與安格拉．梅克爾相似，她也經常視梅克爾為影響極大的啟發來源。
蔡英文初次建立政壇聲望是在 2000 年獲任為陸委會主委時，這實際上使她成為台灣對北京的首席談判代表。她於 2004 年加入民進黨後當選立法委員。在民進黨於 2008 年陷入低潮之際，她以黨主席的身分，恢復黨的名聲與穩定。接下來，她兩度敗給國民黨的對手，第一次是 2010 年參選新北市市長，接著是在 2012 年勢均力敵的台灣總統選舉中落敗。蔡英文後來再度披掛上陣參選總統，贏得最終勝利，充分展現了她的毅力與謙卑。