The seven million Taiwan citizens who vote in Saturday's "three - in - one" local elections should keep in mind that their ballots will be seen globally as well as domestically as a confidence vote in the China-tilting policies of President Ma Ying-jeou and his right-wing Chinese Nationalist Party government.
Among the interested observers will be the leadership of the People's Republic of China's ruling Chinese Communist Party, who are already pushing to include political issues in the talks between the KMT and the CCP after the signing of nine agreements on economic and transportation and legal issues and the launching of talks toward an comprehensive "economic cooperation framework agreement" (ECFA).