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Surprise result will shake up parties and test mainland ties

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The upset victory of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) in yesterday's legislative elections is expected to trigger realignments which will have dramatic effects on the political landscape.

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President Chen Shui-bian is likely to emerge with a much stronger hand, boosting the DPP's chances of winning the next presidential election in 2004.

But with a stronger DPP and a weaker Kuomintang , the already frosty ties between Taipei and Beijing could be strained even further.

As expected, no single party emerged yesterday with a legislative majority. This means that the next few weeks will see frenzied horse-trading among the major political players.

But one thing appears certain: the DPP's strong performance will give Mr Chen a good chance of patching together a majority, with the help of the fledgling Taiwan Solidarity Union backed by former president Lee Teng-hui and rebel KMT legislators.

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The KMT, which last year lost the presidency for the first time in more than 50 years, is likely to face further splits and defections.

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