Although the three referendum proposals pushed by the Kuomintang and the Taiwan People's Party have cleared the Legislative Yuan, public discussion of them has been muted, and their value to the KMT-TPP camp in the year-end elections is likely to be quite limited.

• Three proposals — writing corporal punishment by caning into law, earmarking traffic fines for dedicated use, and abolishing the nuclear-free homeland policy — have passed a Legislative Yuan vote, and the Central Election Commission is set to announce the results of its review.

• Lin Chia-ho, associate professor at National Chengchi University's College of Law, criticised Taiwan's referendums as having long been reduced to a tool for parties to boost their electoral prospects, rather than addressing issues that civil society groups genuinely care about.

• Caning is regarded by most countries as an inhumane punishment that violates international human rights conventions. Taiwan's current penalties only restrict personal liberty and do not directly inflict bodily harm.

• This is the fourth pro-nuclear referendum in eight years. Its proponents stress the risk of power shortages while sidestepping the question of nuclear waste, and the Lai administration has already announced it is assessing the restart of the Maanshan and Kuosheng nuclear plants.

• Holding referendums alongside the 2018 general election clearly swayed the outcome, but this year figures such as Chiang Wan-an and Lee Si-chuan have barely mentioned the referendums, making that effect hard to replicate.

Outlook: After the Central Election Commission announces its review results on the 28th, the three proposals will still proceed to a vote, but they are unlikely to become a main battleground in the year-end elections.