National Referendum, 26 July 2025

In the days leading up to Taiwan’s 26 July 2025 nationwide referendum – widely dubbed the “Great Recall”, several tropical systems were active in the western Pacific, most notably Typhoon Fung-wong or Francisco, and typhoon or the tropical storm Co-May (Strong M, 2025). Taiwan’s Central Weather Administration tracked Fung-wong as it passed north of the island around 24-25 July 2025, bringing periods of heavy rain and gusty winds, particularly to northern and northeastern areas (Wenxuan C., 2025).

Co-May developed soon after and added moisture to eastern and southeastern waters. Despite unsettled weather during the campaign’s final stretch, neither system made direct landfall on Taiwan voting day, and no nationwide suspension orders were issued. While official fatality counts directly tied to the July event vary, records of July 2025 to late July heavy rains across central and southern Taiwan indicate at least 6 deaths and multiple missing people associated with the flooding (Hindustan Times, 2025).

The so called “Great Recall” refers to a coordinated wave of recall petition targeting multiple opposition legislators and a mayor, culminating in simultaneous votes on 26 July 2025. This is the largest vote of its kind in Taiwan’s history. According to news reports, voters in 31 districts joined the recall votes to decide the position of the Taiwan’s opposition Kuomintang (known as KMT) (Aljazeera, 2025).  Under Taiwan’s Public Officials Election and Recall Act, a recall can be initiated after a petition process meets statutory signature thresholds; the measure passes only if (1) more votes support recall than oppose it and (2) affirmative votes reach at least 25% of eligible voters in that constituency (Taipei Times, 2025).

Impact on the Electoral Process

The 26 July 2025 referendum was held amid forecasts of heavy rains and typhoon related weather. Although Typhoon Francesca did not directly impact election infrastructure, it affected the planning of the election event.  Media coverage in Taipei and other regions reported heavy rains were expected on the morning of the recall vote, indicating that the severe weather was directly relevant to voter participation on election day (Ya-yun C., 2025)

In response to the typhoon threat, the Central Election Commission (CEC) took several specific, documented actions to safeguard electoral participation and ensure voter and staff safety. As local news reported, the president of the CEC met with the Central Weather Administration to obtain direct briefings on typhoon development and strengthen weather monitoring ahead of the 26 July recall votes (Dae-jun K., 2025).

Further, the CEC activated a weather response coordination mechanism to work with local election commissions, ensuring that up-to-date weather information was continuously delivered to officials responsible for polling station operations countrywide. This included establishment of a centralized response center to guide and supervise local election committees on necessary actions if severe weather threatened safety ((Lin Chih-yi, Jonathan Chin, 2025).

Also, ahead of the election day, the CEC clarified and prepared procedures under Article 66 Public Officials Election and Recall Act (Huaqian G., 2025). In line with this law, the CEC confirmed that if a local government declared a typhoon situation a dangerous weather conditions, polling locations in those areas would immediately suspend voting activities. Moreover, the CEC also issued reminders to the public about weather monitoring and safety measures in affected regions (Hakkanews, 2025).

Author: Amali Thanthrige