Taipei: Chairman Michael You on Monday urged lawmakers to limit the number of referendum initiatives that could be held alongside Taiwan's year-end local elections, saying the country's election system has finite administrative capacity.

According to Focus Taiwan, You emphasized during a press conference that holding referendums alongside the Nov. 28 local elections has become "a necessary trend" following the passage of an amendment by opposition parties on Nov. 21, 2025. This amendment enables national referendums to occur on the same day as local elections. In recent months, opposition lawmakers have discussed plans to advance several referendum proposals.

You clarified that his comments reflect an assessment of the political situation rather than any official CEC position on the proposals. This clarification came after ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lawmakers criticized him for assuming referendum proposals would be approved. He urged lawmakers from all parties to consider the election system's capacity when promoting referendum initiatives, noting that "one referendum would be manageable, two would already be demanding, and three would be more than election authorities could reasonably handle."

Taiwan's "nine-in-one" local elections are among the world's most complex, You explained, as voters cast multiple ballots on the same day to elect various local officials, including mayors, county magistrates, and city and county councilors. Against this backdrop, You reiterated his opposition to introducing absentee voting in local elections, arguing that combining absentee voting with the nine-in-one polls would be "a disaster." He added that broader public discussion and political consensus are necessary before absentee voting can be introduced in Taiwan.

The remarks came as the opposition continues to discuss placing five referendum proposals before voters on the same day as the local elections. The main opposition Kuomintang (KMT) plans to pursue referendums on restoring nuclear power generation, opposing the abolition of the death penalty, and introducing caning for people convicted of certain serious crimes. Meanwhile, the Taiwan People's Party (TPP) has proposed referendums on introducing absentee voting for presidential, legislative, and nationwide referendum elections, and earmarking all traffic fine revenue for road safety improvements.