With the Nov. 29 elections less than 12 days away, election fever went up a notch yesterday with major political parties holding large rallies across the nation.
As both the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) have set central Taiwan as the key battleground, the DPP staged its first large-scale campaign rally in central Greater Taichung last night, while Taichung Mayor Jason Hu (胡志強) of the KMT held two rallies.
At the DPP rally, its Greater Taichung mayoral candidate, Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍), Changhua County commissioner candidate Wei Ming-ku (魏明谷) and Nantou County commissioner candidate Lee Wen-chung (李文忠) trumpeted their campaign platforms, with hopes to turn the tables for the party across the board in the region.
Their campaign messages revolved around themes of regional governance and integrated construction.
Lin said that people should use their votes to call for an end to a government plagued with fiascoes and legal accusations, and one that never lived up to its promises.
“It is time to use your votes to determine Taiwan’s future, the time to welcome a new era,” Lin said, adding that he, Wei and Lee were in agreement on many issues and that they would be responsible — if elected — for making central Taiwan a better and more prosperous region.
Separately, Hu held two rallies in the city’s Dali (大里) and Wurih (烏日) districts to bolster support.
Hu’s wife Shao Hsiao-ling (邵曉鈴) called on supporters to vote for Hu, saying that he has great hopes that the city will one day become internationally renowned.
The director of Hu’s campaign office in Dali District, Lee Huan-hsiang (李煥湘), also tried to raise spirits by saying that Hu’s popularity was not trailing rival Lin by 10 percent as some polls suggested.
Hu, who has been in office for 12 years, said it does not matter how long one has been in office, but what one has accomplished during that time.
“My rivals keep pointing to how long I have been in office because they cannot find other faults with my governance,” Hu said, adding that his record was clean and that he hoped the city’s voters would vote for him again.
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