Continuing what appears to be a flip-flopping game of her own making, Taichung City Mayor Chang Wen-yin (
"I have been saying that I'll never be absent from the year-end election for some time. But my decision is still pending as I am still evaluating whether I should join the legislative election or the mayoral election," Chang told the Taipei Times newspaper.
A source close to Chang, however, said the incumbent mayor from the DPP has decided to forego the legislative election.
"She has decided to quit the DPP to join the mayoral election," the source told the Taipei Times.
But in an interview with Ettoday.com yesterday Chang said: "I am ready at all times to take part in the race, and will never be absent from the year-end election. The critical moment for me to announce my decision to join the race will be when the support of my administration becomes apparent."
In the interview, Chang also denied charges that President Chen Shui-bian (
Chang's decision to join the mayoral race, once finalized, is deemed to complicate the race in the biggest city in central Taiwan, local observers said.
Chang dropped out of the DPP's primary for its candidate for Taichung mayor in February, giving the opportunity to run on the DPP ticket to another party hopeful, Michael Tsai (
Chang's withdrawal then was triggered by Tsai's victory over Chang in polls by 27.7 points. The results suggested that Chang stood little chance to be nominated unless she won all the votes of the party's members -- accounting for 30 points -- to match Tsai in the primary's second stage.
Responding to Chang's statement, Tsai and KMT candidate Jason Hu (
"She has been saying this for the past three months ... But I welcome her to join the [mayoral] race and hope she will make up her mind as soon as possible," Hu told the Taipei Times.
Chang-Liao Wan-chien (
"If she is determined to join the mayoral election, that means she has to quit the DPP. Then it will be detrimental to the party as well as to herself," Chang-Liao said.
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