Throngs of DPP officials traveled back to Hualien County yesterday for last-minute campaigning for the party's candidate in the by-election, You Ying-lung (
The results of today's vote are expected by 8pm, with 256,685 eligible voters casting ballots at 265 polling stations in 13 cities and townships in the county.
PHOTO: CHIANG YING-YING, TAIPEI TIMES
You's camp yesterday held a number of street processions and motorcade parades before ending the day with a rally attended by President Chen Shui-bian (
At the rally, Chen reiterated that the by-election was not a prelude to next year's presidential election and called on voters to elect the most capable commissioner.
"You has always wanted to work for Hualien's people, as can be seen in his previous three endeavors. KMT Candidate Hsieh Shen-shan (
"If Hsieh really cared about Hualien, why did he run in the Taipei County commissioner election in 2001. He is now spending his retirement in Hualien. What can he do for Hualien people?" Chen asked.
Chen also criticized independent candidate Wu Kuo-tung (
"If Wu is convicted in his case, the Hualien people might have to elect another commissioner, which would be a joke on Hualien people," Chen said.
You said at the rally yesterday that he was committed to improving the welfare of the Aboriginal communities, who make up a quarter of Hualien's residents, by increasing job opportunities for them.
You also promised to increase construction budgets for Hualien and to maintain the stability of personnel system in the Hualien County Government to dispel worries about a reshuffle after the DPP takes power.
During the day yesterday, Chen accompanied You in a blitz of street processions from Hualien's southernmost Yuli township to Kuanfu and Fenglin townships to attract support.
The final campaign activities yesterday also saw Vice President Annette Lu (
Hoping that it's fourth time lucky, You, who failed the last two commissioner elections and one legislative election, appealed for the sympathy of the voters to give him a chance to serve them.
"Give me two years, and I will give you a different Hualien," You's campaign banner read.
You's campaign office has also been advising people that the significance of You's victory would be an unprecedented transfer of political power in Hualien County, which has been ruled by the KMT for 50 years.
You yesterday expressed confidence in his performance and dismissed Hsieh's strategy of appealing to voters to vote tactically against Wu to avoid splitting the pan-blue vote.
"Given the crowds of people joining Wu's street procession, which we estimate attract between 5,000 and 6,000 people, we don't see Wu's support waning. Therefore, the `dump and save' strategy Hsieh has employed is not working at all," You said.
With each candidate using every possible means to attract support, You yesterday claimed he has the support of Liu Chao-eh (
Liu, who failed to secure the KMT's nomination in a bid to succeed her husband in the by-election, was seen as an important factor that could sway the election in the final countdown to today's poll.
Taiwan has received more than US$70 million in royalties as of the end of last year from developing the F-16V jet as countries worldwide purchase or upgrade to this popular model, government and military officials said on Saturday. Taiwan funded the development of the F-16V jet and ended up the sole investor as other countries withdrew from the program. Now the F-16V is increasingly popular and countries must pay Taiwan a percentage in royalties when they purchase new F-16V aircraft or upgrade older F-16 models. The next five years are expected to be the peak for these royalties, with Taiwan potentially earning
STAY IN YOUR LANE: As the US and Israel attack Iran, the ministry has warned China not to overstep by including Taiwanese citizens in its evacuation orders The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) yesterday rebuked a statement by China’s embassy in Israel that it would evacuate Taiwanese holders of Chinese travel documents from Israel amid the latter’s escalating conflict with Iran. Tensions have risen across the Middle East in the wake of US and Israeli airstrikes on Iran beginning Saturday. China subsequently issued an evacuation notice for its citizens. In a news release, the Chinese embassy in Israel said holders of “Taiwan compatriot permits (台胞證)” issued to Taiwanese nationals by Chinese authorities for travel to China — could register for evacuation to Egypt. In Taipei, the ministry yesterday said Taiwan
Taiwan is awaiting official notification from the US regarding the status of the Agreement on Reciprocal Trade (ART) after the US Supreme Court ruled US President Donald Trump's global tariffs unconstitutional. Speaking to reporters before a legislative hearing today, Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) said that Taiwan's negotiation team remains focused on ensuring that the bilateral trade deal remains intact despite the legal challenge to Trump's tariff policy. "The US has pledged to notify its trade partners once the subsequent administrative and legal processes are finalized, and that certainly includes Taiwan," Cho said when asked about opposition parties’ doubts that the ART was
If China chose to invade Taiwan tomorrow, it would only have to sever three undersea fiber-optic cable clusters to cause a data blackout, Jason Hsu (許毓仁), a senior fellow at the Hudson Institute and former Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislator, told a US security panel yesterday. In a Taiwan contingency, cable disruption would be one of the earliest preinvasion actions and the signal that escalation had begun, he said, adding that Taiwan’s current cable repair capabilities are insufficient. The US-China Economic and Security Review Commission (USCC) yesterday held a hearing on US-China Competition Under the Sea, with Hsu speaking on
RSS