During the 2012 presidential election cycle, Tsai said that she disagreed with the 1992 Consensus as the basis for negotiations between Taiwan and mainland China, that such a consensus only served to buttress the "One China Principle", and that "no such consensus exists" because the majority of the Taiwanese public does not necessarily agree with this consensus. She believed that broad consultations should be held at all levels of Taiwanese society to decide the basis on which to advance negotiations with Beijing, dubbed the "Taiwan consensus".
During the 2012 presidential election cycle, Tsai expressed disagreement with the 1992 Consensus as a basis for negotiations between Taiwan and mainland China. She argued that the consensus only served to reinforce the "One China Principle" and that it lacked widespread support among Taiwanese citizens.  She proposed instead a broader consultation process involving all levels of Taiwanese society to determine the foundation for future talks with Beijing, which she termed the "Taiwan Consensus".