Celebrities who participated in yesterday's Kaohsiung councilor election had mixed results as some very popular candidates lost against expectations while others won.
TSU councilor candidate for Kaohsiung, Chen Ying-tsan (陳英燦), a TV anchor and news commentator at the local cable television Formosa TV, surprisingly lost his election bid.
Chen, who was one of the two candidates in Kaohsiung City's third electoral district, namely the Sanmin district (三民區), lost the election by a margin of 101 votes.
According to TSU lawmaker Cheng Chen-lung (程振隆), two factors contributed to Chen's failure: his lack of grassroots support and competition from another TSU hopeful in the same constituency.
Cheng told the Taipei Times yesterday that "Chen was seen as a strong candidate as his celebrity status should have boosted his chances but, surprisingly, the TSU's other candidate for the same area drew votes away from Chen and that's the main reason of Chen's failure."
"The TSU should have nominated only Chen, so that votes for Chen would not have been taken by the other candidate, Wu Chin-fa (吳錦發). The TSU was relatively inexperienced in estimating the vote distribution in this area," Chen said.
Apart from his votes getting siphoned off by another TSU candidate, Chen also lacked support from the so-called local "pillars," or "vote captains" who could have organized support for him.
Chen used to be a seasoned media worker and has extensive experience of working in TV and radio stations. He became a celebrity by hosting a news commentary program on Formosa TV. He is also known for his pro-independence stance.
Incumbent and veteran Kao-hsiung councilors who are very popular but failed to get re-elected include the KMT's Hung Mao-chun (洪茂俊) and Tsai Ma-fu (蔡媽福).
Hung was known for his outspokenness in the interpellation sessions of the city council. The reasons for his defeat in his bid to get re-elected a fifth time might be because their were too many nominees in his electoral district -- many of them younger and more viable competitors.
Tsai, who sought to get re-elected a fourth time yesterday, was also defeated although he did get a lot of votes.
His failure might be linked to his capricious party affiliations. Tsai was first a KMT member, but he joined the PFP after the 2000 presidential election. He then left the PFP this year and ran independently for the elections after he failed to win the PFP's nomination.
Two of the TSU's seven councilor candidates for Kaohsiung did get elected. One of them is Yeh Chin-ling (葉津鈴), who also enjoyed a lot of publicity because she hosts a radio program on a local radio station which she also owns.
Three Taiwanese airlines have prohibited passengers from packing Bluetooth earbuds and their charger cases in checked luggage. EVA Air and Uni Air said that Bluetooth earbuds and charger cases are categorized as portable electronic devices, which should be switched off if they are placed in checked luggage based on international aviation safety regulations. They must not be in standby or sleep mode. However, as charging would continue when earbuds are placed in the charger cases, which would contravene international aviation regulations, their cases must be carried as hand luggage, they said. Tigerair Taiwan said that earbud charger cases are equipped
Foreign travelers entering Taiwan on a short layover via Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport are receiving NT$600 gift vouchers from yesterday, the Tourism Administration said, adding that it hopes the incentive would boost tourism consumption at the airport. The program, which allows travelers holding non-Taiwan passports who enter the country during a layover of up to 24 hours to claim a voucher, aims to promote attractions at the airport, the agency said in a statement on Friday. To participate, travelers must sign up on the campaign Web site, the agency said. They can then present their passport and boarding pass for their connecting international
UNILATERAL MOVES: Officials have raised concerns that Beijing could try to exert economic control over Kinmen in a key development plan next year The Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) yesterday said that China has so far failed to provide any information about a new airport expected to open next year that is less than 10km from a Taiwanese airport, raising flight safety concerns. Xiamen Xiangan International Airport is only about 3km at its closest point from the islands in Kinmen County — the scene of on-off fighting during the Cold War — and construction work can be seen and heard clearly from the Taiwan side. In a written statement sent to Reuters, the CAA said that airports close to each other need detailed advanced
Tropical Storm Fung-Wong would likely strengthen into a typhoon later today as it continues moving westward across the Pacific before heading in Taiwan’s direction next week, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. As of 8am, Fung-Wong was about 2,190km east-southeast of Cape Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point, moving westward at 25kph and possibly accelerating to 31kph, CWA data showed. The tropical storm is currently over waters east of the Philippines and still far from Taiwan, CWA forecaster Tseng Chao-cheng (曾昭誠) said, adding that it could likely strengthen into a typhoon later in the day. It is forecast to reach the South China Sea
RSS