Taiwan’s ‘West Wing’-style hit completely ignores China. For some, that’s the draw

TAIPEI, Taiwan — Plagiarism rumors. Election rallies featuring inflated batons and cheers for “frozen garlic.” Boozy karaoke after-parties.

A popular new Netflix drama set in Taipei depicts all the hallmarks of a Taiwanese political campaign, with one glaring omission: debate over how to handle China.

That existential question is already looming over Taiwan’s actual presidential election in January. While China has long declared the self-ruled island a part of its territory, relations between Beijing and Taipei have deteriorated to their worst state in decades, raising the risk of military conflict.

But the eight-part series “Wave Makers” makes no mention of cross-strait relations, focusing instead on the everyday lives of campaign staffers trying to get their candidate elected president of Taiwan.

For some fans, that’s a large part of its appeal. For the show’s creators, it was a conscious decision to keep their