Former premier Frank Hsieh (謝長廷) emerged as the winner of the first stage of the Democratic Progressive Party's (DPP) presidential primary yesterday. As a result, one of his three opponents decided to drop out of the race and another announced a halt to all campaign events.
Under the DPP's system, the party member vote counts for 30 percent of a would-be candidate's "score," while a public poll counts for 70 percent.
Premier Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) announced his withdrawal from the primary shortly after results showed he lagged behind Hsieh in the vote by DPP members.
DPP Chairman Yu Shyi-kun told a separate news conference that he would immediately stop all his campaigning activities as a sign of respect for "the choice of the people."
Hsieh beat his three rivals by garnering 62,849 votes yesterday.
Su came in second with 46,994 votes followed by DPP Chairman Yu Shyi-kun, who won 22,211 votes.
Vice President Annette Lu (
A total of 254,963 DPP members were eligible to vote yesterday. Turnout was 56.06 percent.
majority
Hsieh won the majority of the votes in 17 out of 24 cities and counties, including Taipei City, Kaohsiung City, Kaohsiung County and Taichung County.
Hsieh lost to Su by 127 votes in Taipei County, which was considered a Su stronghold because the premier was formerly Taipei County commissioner.
President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) congratulated Hsieh on his first-stage victory when Hsieh telephoned him last night to report the result of the election.
Hsieh also telephoned Su and the other contenders after all the tallies were completed. He also visited Yu later last night.
Speaking at a press conference at his campaign office, Hsieh pledged to make an all-out effort to mend fences damaged during the primary process.
"As the first round of the primary is over, it is time to come together for the best interests of the party and the country," he said.
Hsieh was referring to Chen's appeal yesterday morning for the four presidential hopefuls to cooperate with each other.
Commenting on the controversy surrounding an allegation of corruption against him -- which has caused a rift between him and Su -- Hsieh said that yesterday's result was a vote of confidence in him and that he would be proven innocent.
document
In the lead up to yesterday's vote, Hsieh and Su's camps locked horns over a document leaked to the Chinese-language Next Magazine.
On Wednesday the magazine published a copy of what it said was an official document signed by Kaohsiung Prosecutor Lo Chien-hsun (
The magazine said that Lo thought Hsieh should be indicted on corruption charges on suspicion of accepting illegal donations from a Kaohsiung Rapid Transit Corp board member and others during his term as mayor of Kaohsiung.
Hsieh yesterday called on the party to use the energy accumulated during the primary to unite in the face of future challenges.
Hsieh also called on party members to use that energy to campaign together for referendums on the Chinese Nationalist Party's (KMT) stolen assets and applying to join the UN under the name "Taiwan."
Hsieh said he would not abandon the ideal of normalizing Taiwan and was confident that he could lead the nation to join international bodies as "Taiwan."
"I am sure we will accomplish the goal and I will pursue it with a practical approach. We will march forward and we will maintain economic development and social and political stability and achieve [normalized] international status," Hsieh said.
He made the comment with former Kaohsiung acting mayor Yeh Chu-lan (
Flanked by his wife and daughters and some DPP lawmakers at his campaign office last night, Su called on DPP members to support "the one who wins the primary."
"For the party's unity, the party's chance of winning the presidential election ... I have decided to drop out of the primary. Taiwan has to win," he said.
"The primary has reflected the will of DPP party members, and I therefore accept and respect the result," he said.
Some of Su's staff shed tears over the yesterday's results, while Su shook their hands.
He thanked party members and his campaign staff for giving him their support and encouragement during the primary.
He then left without taking any questions from the press.
Sources from Su's campaign camp said they felt that he should not think about resigning.
"[The premier] will not resign," the sources said.
The sources said that Su's resignation would put the president in a difficult situation and have an adverse effect on the DPP's presidential campaign.
Before the party headquarters announced the final result last night, Yu held a press conference in his campaign office, announcing his defeat.
"This primary was a victory for the DPP because the party elected its presidential candidate through a democratic process," he said.
"DPP members were able to choose the presidential contender they preferred and participate in the party's presidential nomination," he said.
During the primary, aspirants had "clearly elaborated on where they would like to lead the nation," Yu said.
Meanwhile, Lu said in an interview with CTI-TV last night that she would stay in the race for the next phase of the DPP nomination process.
"I"m an athlete in democracy. There's no reason for an athlete to give up halfway," she said.
"I knew I would fail, but I still went through [membership vote] unashamedly," she said.
She congratulated Hsieh and praised Su's decision to withdraw from the primary's second phase.
"I think ? Hsieh will win the opinion polls, but it's alright," she said.
Earlier yesterday, Lu said it was unlikely she would run as an independent candidate in the presidential election.
Speaking on a TV program, Lu thanked her supporters for voting her because "each ballot was like a pearl. It is precious."
However, she criticized the party's primary mechanism as "unfair" and the party for failing to take a neutral stance during the primary process.
In other developments, Acting DPP Chairman Chai Trong-rong (蔡同榮) told a press conference last night that the party would proceed with a public opinion poll for all four contenders between Wednesday and Friday, even though Su has dropped out and Yu has sidelined his campaign.
DPP regulations stipulate that those who have registered as presidential contenders cannot withdraw without the approval of the party's Central Executive Committee. However, the regulations also stipulate that such a decision cannot be made after the primary begins.
In related news, Kaohsiung District Prosecutors' Office Spokesman Chung Chung-hsiao (鍾忠孝) said investigators yesterday had summoned 10 people for questioning on suspicion they bribed voters in yesterday's DPP poll.
Investigators said that people around Shan Feng Temple (
The questioning was still going on at press time.
Additional reporting by Rich Chang
ROLLER-COASTER RIDE: More than five earthquakes ranging from magnitude 4.4 to 5.5 on the Richter scale shook eastern Taiwan in rapid succession yesterday afternoon Back-to-back weather fronts are forecast to hit Taiwan this week, resulting in rain across the nation in the coming days, the Central Weather Administration said yesterday, as it also warned residents in mountainous regions to be wary of landslides and rockfalls. As the first front approached, sporadic rainfall began in central and northern parts of Taiwan yesterday, the agency said, adding that rain is forecast to intensify in those regions today, while brief showers would also affect other parts of the nation. A second weather system is forecast to arrive on Thursday, bringing additional rain to the whole nation until Sunday, it
LANDSLIDES POSSIBLE: The agency advised the public to avoid visiting mountainous regions due to more expected aftershocks and rainfall from a series of weather fronts A series of earthquakes over the past few days were likely aftershocks of the April 3 earthquake in Hualien County, with further aftershocks to be expected for up to a year, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. Based on the nation’s experience after the quake on Sept. 21, 1999, more aftershocks are possible over the next six months to a year, the agency said. A total of 103 earthquakes of magnitude 4 on the local magnitude scale or higher hit Hualien County from 5:08pm on Monday to 10:27am yesterday, with 27 of them exceeding magnitude 5. They included two, of magnitude
CONDITIONAL: The PRC imposes secret requirements that the funding it provides cannot be spent in states with diplomatic relations with Taiwan, Emma Reilly said China has been bribing UN officials to obtain “special benefits” and to block funding from countries that have diplomatic ties with Taiwan, a former UN employee told the British House of Commons on Tuesday. At a House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee hearing into “international relations within the multilateral system,” former Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) employee Emma Reilly said in a written statement that “Beijing paid bribes to the two successive Presidents of the [UN] General Assembly” during the two-year negotiation of the Sustainable Development Goals. Another way China exercises influence within the UN Secretariat is
Taiwan’s first drag queen to compete on the internationally acclaimed RuPaul’s Drag Race, Nymphia Wind (妮妃雅), was on Friday crowned the “Next Drag Superstar.” Dressed in a sparkling banana dress, Nymphia Wind swept onto the stage for the final, and stole the show. “Taiwan this is for you,” she said right after show host RuPaul announced her as the winner. “To those who feel like they don’t belong, just remember to live fearlessly and to live their truth,” she said on stage. One of the frontrunners for the past 15 episodes, the 28-year-old breezed through to the final after weeks of showcasing her unique