The DPP's William Lai is set to be Taiwan's next president, after his closest rival, the opposition Kuomintang, conceded defeat
Lai has been labelled a troublemaker by China, who warned people against voting for him, while KMT had promised better ties with Beijing and peace in the Taiwan Strait
A third party, the Taiwan People's Party, was on the ballot - but its leader has also now conceded to the DPP
Taiwan is a democratic island that governs itself - but it is claimed by mainland China
A total of 113 legislative seats are also being contested today
Rupert Wingfield-Hayes
in Taipei
William Lai has arrived to speak at the media tent of the DPP's campaign headquarters. The crowd is excited to hear him.
It took 20 minutes to fight our way through the crowd to get here.
Image source, Getty ImagesSupporters at TPP rally
Elsewhere, at the TPP rally, Ko Wen-je thanked his supporters and asked them not to give up.
"We have already created a lot of miracles... This election has shown that Taiwan really needs another voice other than the blue and the green," he said at the party's rally at Taipei's Xinzhuang District
"We don't have too much time to be sad, because Taiwan will continue to move forward, so we have to continue to work hard. As long as you don't give up, we too do not have any reason to give up."
The party's rally was packed with young supporters, although many of them looking dejected. Earlier, some of them were in tears.
At one point, the crowd was seen singing and waving their phones in the air to Ko's campaign theme "Walking Steadily".
"As the sun rises again tomorrow, let's continue to work hard. We only have one Taiwan... And next time, we will win the country back," Ko said.
Image source, Getty ImagesA young man wipes off his tears at TPP's rally
Rupert Wingfield-Hayes
in Taipei
As the young DPP supporter just said, the win for William Lai shows Chinese pressure is ineffective.
Most people have clearly not been swayed by the argument that this is a vote for war - which was what Beijing said and also what the oppositon KMT said in its campaign.
Rupert Wingfield-Hayes
in Taipei
There was an enormous cheer here at the DPP's campaign headquarters when they flashed up the news that the DPP had crossed five million votes - this was before the KMT conceded and they already believed they had won the election.
I spoke to a young woman who said she was extremely happy and excited about the result.
"The message to China is we will choose our leaders and we will not give in to intimidation by you."
But she is also worried they might lose the legislature, which makes it hard for Lai to enact his programme.
Celia Hatton
BBC Asia Pacific Regional Editor
Current vice-president and DPP candidate William Lai is set to be Taiwan's next president.
For the past eight years, Beijing has been highly critical of Taiwan’s current leader, Tsai Ing-wen, but the concern is that Lai will push the envelope with Beijing even further than Tsai did.
His supporters argue the opposite: the real danger, they say, is a KMT presidency. They fear that China’s Communist leaders wouldn’t settle for warmer ties and would push Taiwan towards unification.
Image source, Getty ImagesChina has long claimed Taiwan as its territory
Taiwan occupies a vital place in the world for several reasons - there are few other young democracies that demonstrate as strong of a commitment to free and fair elections as it does.
Also, if Taiwan's semiconductor industry was threatened or suspended, the silicon chips it provides for many of our computers, phones, cars and medical equipment would also dry up.
Taiwan is also one of the flashpoints at the center of the US-China relationship.
That’s why so many had been holding their breath for the election results - the stakes had always been high.
Shortly after the KMT conceded defeat to William Lai in the presidential race, the TPP's Ko Wen-je also conceded.
The KMT's Hou Yu-ih who earlier conceded the election is now thanking supporters at his rally - and has congratulated the DPP's William Lai.
"I hope all parties can face up to Taiwan's challenges. We need a united Taiwan," he said.
"We have many issues and problems, we need a government that solves them, and we need a government that also serves its youth. Blue [the KMT] will move forward, we will be stronger... and make greater leaps forward."
Image source, BBC NewsHou Yu-ih and his running mate Jaw Shau-kong conceded defeat at a KMT rally in Taipei
The Kuomintang has conceded defeat.
"Thank you all. I tried my best, I'm very sad that I could not complete the change of government. I'm very sorry," said the KMT's Hou Yu-ih.
The DPP's William Lai has become the first presidential candidate to get five million votes, according to local broadcasting stations.
Ballots have been counted from more than 90% of polling stations across Taiwan, according to the Central Election Commission's live feed.
Lok Lee
BBC Chinese, Taipei
The mood at the Taiwan People’s Party has dampened as the Democratic Progressive Party's William Lai lead widens.
More than half of Ko Wen-je’s supporters who have come to this rally appear to be under 40. The host called on the supporters, who call themselves “little grass”, not to give up as millions of votes are still uncounted. But some supporters are already crying.
“Even though we are trailing behind, I don’t think my vote has been a waste,” Lei Lei tells me, adding that grass grows into meadows.
She says she doesn’t want Taiwanese politics to be dominated by the Democratic Progressive Party and the Kuomintang. “I will wait for four more years and will not give up.”
Image source, BBC ChineseRupert Wingfield-Hayes
in Taipei
It appears as if the DPP's WIlliam Lai is too far ahead now for the others to catch up. He needs about five million votes to win the three-way winner-takes-all presidential race.
Lai is already crossing 4.6 million votes, according to the official tally.
The main opposition KMT is now nearly a million votes behind.
Tessa Wong
in Taipei
With the TPP’s Ko Wen-je getting a significant vote share in the latest count, and the KMT trailing frontrunner DPP by a large margin, some KMT supporters see Ko as having stolen their winning edge.
Ms Huang was seen happily dancing to the music earlier at the KMT rally.
But when asked about the vote count so far, her expression turns dark.
“I’m very unhappy with Ko!” she shouts.
“He knew he never stood a chance at winning so why did he run? He has spoilt our chances. I blame him and I blame all these young people who have supported him.”
Tens of thousands of supporters at a Democratic Progressive Party rally are eagerly following the results as the votes in Taiwan's election are counted.
Many here are excited as DPP leader William Lai takes the lead - but others are worried this could change.
Excitement and anxiety at DPP rally
Rupert Wingfield-Hayes
in Taipei
The offical count from the Central Election Commission is much slower. They have only counted about three to four million votes so far.
According to that count:
So according to the offical count Lai is further ahead than these unofficial tallies cited by media outlets.
Of course, they have counted far fewer votes - compared to the unofficial figures - but he is very much in the lead.
Image source, Getty ImagesWhoever is elected Taiwan's next president will shape relations with both Beijing and Washington
Whoever is elected Taiwan's next president will shape relations with both Beijing and Washington. The island is a key flashpoint in their tussle for power in this region.
Beijing has long claimed the island, but ties have especially soured in recent years under President Tsai Ing-wen and the Democratic Progressive Party.
China has dialled up military pressure on the island over the past year with a record number of incursions.
Any escalation between China and Taiwan runs the risk of turning into something bigger and more dangerous. The US has a big naval presence in the region, while Australia and Japan too have bases around the island.
A war in Taiwan would be devastating both in its human toll and as a blow to the island's democracy.
It would also devastate the global economy. Close to half of the world's container ships pass through the Taiwan Strait every year, making it a critical hub for international trade.
Read more here on why this vote matters to the world.
Rupert Wingfield-Hayes
in Taipei
If William Lai maintains this margin through the offical count, that's a 9% lead - it would spell a substantial victory for the ruling DPP. And that too for a third term in a row, which would be historic.
If that happens, and he wins by such a wide margin, it would be an absolute rejection of the pressure from Beijing and the propagandising against Lai, who they have called a "troublemaker through and through".
Yvette Tan
Live reporter
Image source, Getty ImagesThe DPP's William Lai is in the lead
It's just past 19:00 in Taiwan - where early results are streaming in quickly after polls closed just over three hours ago.
William Lai of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party is currently in the lead, ahead of the Kuomintang's Hou Yu-ih and the Taiwan People's Party's Ko Wen-je.
The stakes of this election are particularly high - and will play a part in shaping not only Taiwan's relations with China - but Beijing's ties with Washington.
Here's a quick look at where we are so far:
Stay with us as we bring you the latest.
Rupert Wingfield-Hayes
in Taipei
We’re being told William Lai, who is now in the lead, has arrived at the DPP headquarters.
Rupert Wingfield-Hayes
in Taipei
It's very, very noisy at the headquarters of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), whose candidate William Lai is now leading. There are thousands of people here, maybe 20,000 to 30,000, filling the street outside.
I just met a woman who flew for 36 hours from Dallas to vote today.
She said she had been watching the opinion polls and was scared the DPP might lose. So she bought a ticket and flew here. She arrived this morning, went straight to the polling station and voted.
She says she is now confident they will win.
