Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) officials yesterday made last-ditch efforts to solicit support for their candidates in the lead-up to today’s legislative by-elections.
Three by-elections will be held in Taoyuan, Taichung and Taitung. Winning any of the three by-elections will be a breakthrough for the DPP, which hopes to grab more seats in the KMT-dominated Legislative Yuan.
The by-elections in Taoyuan and Taichung counties are being held following the invalidation of the election of the KMT’s Liao Cheng-ching (廖正井) and Chiang Lien-fu (江連福) after they were convicted of vote-buying. The Taitung by-election is being held to fill the seat left vacant by former KMT Legislator Justin Huang (黃健庭), who resigned in October to run in last month’s Taitung County commissioner election, which he won.
PHOTO: CNA
President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) yesterday traveled to Taoyuan, Taichung and Taitung counties to campaign for KMT candidates in his capacity as KMT chairman.
Ma did not attend any by-election-related campaigning events before yesterday.
He brushed off allegations about his reluctance to campaign for former Taitung County commissioner Kuang Li-cheng (鄺麗貞) and walked the streets with her in the morning.
“My schedule has been really tight. I hope I can visit all three counties and campaign for party candidates in one day and dispel all the rumors,” Ma said yesterday in Taitung.
Kuang, who sparked controversy over her frequent foreign trips during typhoon seasons while she was commissioner, had agreed to withdraw from last month’s Taitung County commissioner election race.
She yesterday thanked Ma for his support and expressed confidence she would win today’s by-election.
Ma also campaigned for legislative candidates Yu Wen-chin (余文欽) of Taichung and Chen Li-ling (陳麗玲) of Taoyuan.
The DPP yesterday also pulled out all last-minute stops on election eve to ensure victory in today’s by-elections.
The DPP’s main strategy is to stress that the three seats up for grabs today were all made available after the former KMT winners were convicted of vote-buying.
Braving the cold, DPP Chairperson Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) zigzagged across Taoyuan, Taichung and Taitung counties in the last week to support party candidates.
Tsai appeared at a rally for Taichung County nominee Chien Chao-tung (簡肇棟) yesterday before heading north to Taoyuan where an ensemble of DPP heavyweights such as former vice president Annette Lu (呂秀蓮) and former premiers Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) and Yu Shyi-kun (游錫堃) were to stump for Kuo Jung-tsung (郭榮宗), a former DPP lawmaker.
DPP Secretary-General Su Chia-chuan (蘇嘉全) sat at the helm for the race in Taitung where Lai Kun-cheng (賴坤成) will face Kuan.
The DPP have 27 seats in the legislature. If it can take two additional seats, it will pass the crucial threshold of one-fourth of the 113-seat legislature.
In another development, DPP nominee Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴) yesterday completed her registration to vie for the legislative seat for Hualien County in the legislative by-election scheduled to take place on Feb. 27. Also, KMT Secretary-General King Pu-tsung (金溥聰) yesterday announced the nomination of former KMT legislator Apollo Chen (陳學聖) as the party’s candidate to grab another legislative seat in Taoyuan County.
The KMT also completed the nomination process of party candidates in the Feb. 27 by-election in Hualien, Hsinchu, Taoyuan and Chiayi counties.
Cheng Yung-tang (鄭永堂), brother of former Hsinchu County Commissioner Cheng Yung-chin (鄭永金), will run in the legislative by-election in Hsinchu. Lin De-ruei (林德瑞), a professor at National Chungcheng University, will represent the party in Chiayi County, while Wang Ting-sheng (王廷升), a professor at National Tunghua University, will run in Hualien.
ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY CNA
One of two tropical depressions that formed off Taiwan yesterday morning could turn into a moderate typhoon by the weekend, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. Tropical Depression No. 21 formed at 8am about 1,850km off the southeast coast, CWA forecaster Lee Meng-hsuan (李孟軒) said. The weather system is expected to move northwest as it builds momentum, possibly intensifying this weekend into a typhoon, which would be called Mitag, Lee said. The radius of the storm is expected to reach almost 200km, she said. It is forecast to approach the southeast of Taiwan on Monday next week and pass through the Bashi Channel
WARNING: People in coastal areas need to beware of heavy swells and strong winds, and those in mountainous areas should brace for heavy rain, the CWA said The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday issued sea and land warnings for Typhoon Ragasa, forecasting that it would continue to intensify and affect the nation the most today and tomorrow. People in Hualien and Taitung counties, and mountainous areas in Yilan and Pingtung counties, should brace for damage caused by extremely heavy rain brought by the typhoon’s outer rim, as it was upgraded to a super typhoon yesterday morning, the CWA said. As of 5:30pm yesterday, the storm’s center was about 630km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost tip, moving northwest at 21kph, and its maximum wind speed had reached
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday said that it expected to issue a sea warning for Typhoon Ragasa this morning and a land warning at night as it approached Taiwan. Ragasa intensified from a tropical storm into a typhoon at 8am yesterday, the CWA said, adding that at 2pm, it was about 1,110km east-southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost tip. The typhoon was moving northwest at 13kph, with sustained winds of up to 119kph and gusts reaching 155kph, the CWA Web site showed. Forecaster Liu Pei-teng (劉沛滕) said that Ragasa was projected to strengthen as it neared the Bashi Channel, with its 200km
PUBLIC ANNOUNCEMENTS: Hualien and Taitung counties declared today a typhoon day, while schools and offices in parts of Kaohsiung and Pingtung counties are also to close Typhoon Ragasa was forecast to hit its peak strength and come closest to Taiwan from yesterday afternoon through today, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Taiwan proper could be out of the typhoon’s radius by midday and the sea warning might be lifted tonight, it added. CWA senior weather specialist Wu Wan-hua (伍婉華) said that Ragasa’s radius had reached the Hengchun Peninsula by 11am yesterday and was expected to hit Taitung County and Kaohsiung by yesterday evening. Ragasa was forecast to move to Taiwan’s southern offshore areas last night and to its southwestern offshore areas early today, she added. As of 8pm last night,
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