Opposition looks to mayoral races

The victory of the opposition parties in the election for the legislature's vice speaker Friday could set a pattern of cooperation between the KMT and PFP in future elections, members of the two parties said yesterday.

Encouraged by the victory, officials from the two parties began talks yesterday about a joint bid in the year-end elections for the mayors of Taipei and Kaohsiung and possibly in the 2004 presidential race.

"The election of the vice speaker, who has quite limited power and influence, bespoke far-reaching political implications," said lawmaker and PFP Secretary-General David Chung (鍾榮吉). "It shows that the two opposition parties, when pooling their strength, can prevail in the next mayoral and presidential polls."

On Friday, freshman KMT lawmaker Chiang Ping-kun (江丙坤) was elected the vice speaker, thanks to the help of the PFP, which recommended his nomination and gave all of its 45 votes to the former economics official.

Chiang beat DPP standard-bearer Hong Chi-chang (洪奇昌) 115 to 106 during the second round of balloting. Neither candidate won an absolute majority in the first round.

The defeat dealt a severe blow to the DPP, which recently replaced the KMT as the largest party in the lawmaking body.

Chung said that through the election of Chiang, the two opposition parties significantly reduced the level of mutual mistrust which arose from the Dec. 1 elections for local administrators.

Last year, the two parties had agreed to cooperate in six battle-grounds across the country, but the scheme fell apart because of factional resistance.

"Hopefully, the two camps can be more tolerant in the future," Chung said.

Echoing the theme, James Chen (陳健治), a KMT official, said his party must work with the PFP again in the mayoral elections at the end of this year.

"One party should back the bid of the other if he or she stands a better chance of victory," Chen said.

Incumbent Taipei Mayor Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) of the KMT, whose popularity remains high, has indicated that he will seek re-election, leaving the race for Kaohsiung mayor the only possible chance for cooperation.

Going a step further, KMT Secretary-General Lin Fong-cheng (林豐正) said Chiang's election once again confirmed that the opposition held the upper hand in the legislature.

He said he doubted that the Cabinet would seek to overturn a revision to tax distribution rules under which local governments may keep a greater share of tax revenues.

Ma has argued that the funding adjustment is necessary to ease the financial woes facing local governments.

The KMT's willingness to take a tougher stand at the last minute against potentially defiant members played a crucial role in Chiang's win, analysts said.

On Friday noon, KMT spokesman Wu Chin-chi (吳清基) said the party would expel any lawmaker who failed to vote for Chiang.

The policy, they added, came after PFP Chairman James Soong (宋楚瑜) convinced his KMT counterpart, Lien Chan (連戰), of the need for discipline.