After the Fukushima nuclear accident in 2011, Taiwan restricted food imports from the five prefectures around Fukushima, Japan. The purpose of this study is to assess the influence of Taiwanese politics on the 2018 import restriction referendum. In this study, we conducted a telephone survey two months after the referendum to examine the difference between the votes cast and the real opinions using cross analysis. After controlling for individual attribute variables such as age, education level, gender, region, and family composition, we found that party support has a significant effect on attitudes toward food imports from Fukushima. In addition, familiarity with Japanese food also influences attitudes. Thus, in this referendum vote, Kuomintang (KMT) supporters mirrored the party’s support for the import ban while Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) supporters had lower voter intention, although their real opinions may have been in favor of open imports. We conclude that efforts to remove food import restrictions should not only emphasize food-safety policy responses but also domestic politics.
