Voting precincts are making final preparations ahead of a referendum scheduled for this weekend. The goal is to ensure a smooth voting process while keeping voters safe from COVID-19.
This Saturday, Taiwan goes to the polls.
Voters will be asked four questions:
1. Should Taiwan reinstate a ban on imported pork containing the additive ractopamine?
2. What should be the fate of Taiwan’s Fourth Nuclear Power Plant?
3. Should a natural gas facility in Taoyuan be moved to save a nearby algae reef?
4. Should future referendums happen on the same day as elections?
Over 19.8 million citizens are eligible to cast their ballots. These include Taiwan’s youngest voters—those born before August 28, 2003.
All four of the questions on the ballot are hotly contested, and so it seems that turnout will be high. That means millions of people standing in close proximity for long periods as they wait in line to vote. And while Taiwan remains largely COVID-free, authorities can’t afford for this vote to turn into a super-spreader event.
So what can be done, especially considering that people with high fevers will still be allowed to vote? All voters will have their temperature checked, and those with fevers will be taken to vote in booths specially set aside for voters who are feeling unwell.