Personally, I prefer to call myself a “new immigrant” in Mandarin (新住民), but it is a bit strange for Taiwanese when I call myself that because the term is mostly associated with foreign brides from Southeast Asia.

Many new immigrants that have come to take up a new life in Taiwan have not been able to return home for the past two years because of the pandemic.

Candidates like Ms Lu – who is standing for re-election as the head of Pingtung county’s Yanpu rural township – are trying to court new immigrants. Often referred to locally as “new residents”, they became Taiwanese typically through marriage. This means that they are eligible to vote.

New immigrant

Meaning

Noun