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Campaign Special ( Results) - Taichung, Changhua switch sides to back DPP

While central Taiwan voted in support of the pan-blue camp four years ago, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) managed to capture Taichung County and Changhua County this year by a narrow margin.

Meanwhile, the eastern region of the country, along with the offshore counties, voted pan-blue again this year, as expected.

Li Chin-shiang (利錦祥), head of the DPP's Taichung County headquarters, said before the voting that at least two factors had contributed to an increase in pan-green support in the county.

"In Taichung County, a native Taiwanese consciousness has been a big factor in winning constituent support. Most of the residents here have been receptive to the DPP's stance on the Chinese missile threat," Li said.

"At present, about half of the Taichung population works in the agricultural industry, which is uncertain about the impact of opening direct links with China," Li said.

Li also said that the DPP enjoyed the benefits of incumbency in Changhua County, where the DPP's Wong Chin-chu (翁金珠) serves as county commissioner.

While 62 percent of Taichung County voted in 2000 for one or the other member of this year's pan-blue presidential ticket, with 38 percent going to People First Party Chairman James Soong (宋楚瑜) and 24 percent to Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Lien Chan (連戰), President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) walked away with 52 percent of the county's votes yesterday. Chen got only 37 percent of the vote in Taichung County in 2000.

In the last election, 34 percent and 26 percent of the votes in Changhua County went to Soong and Lien respectively, with Chen getting 40 percent of the votes. This year, 48 percent of its votes went to the pan-blue camp, with 52.26 percent voting for Chen.

"A minor injury to President Chen Shui-bian has led to a major injury to the KMT," Taichung Mayor Jason Hu (胡志強) of the KMT said in the aftermath of the voting, referring to Chen's gunshot wound.

Before the voting, Wang Yeh-lih (王業立), chairman of Tunghai University's department of political science, discussed the situation in Taichung.

"The battle in Taichung is a close one. It's just going to depend on the ability of each camp to mobilize voters, and the KMT has traditionally had more success with that in central Taiwan. Still, the pan-green camp started campaigning in the central area very early this time," Wang said.

Chen's promise to build a science park in central Taiwan, which is seen as providing possible economic benefits to the region, was credited with drawing in new DPP voters.

In Taichung City and in Nantou, Chen was able to close the gap that had existed between the pan-blue and pan-green camps. In Taichung City, where 63 percent of voters went pan-blue and 37 percent voted pan-green in 2000, 52.66 percent voted for Lien and 47 percent for Chen this year.

Similarly, in Nantou County, 65 percent of the vote went to the pan-blue camp in 2000 and 34 percent to the pan-green camp. This year, 51 percent voted pan-blue and 49 percent voted pan-green.

DPP legislative caucus leader Tsai Huang-liang (蔡煌瑯) said before the voting that reconstruction efforts after the 921 earthquake in 1999 were the primary factor that Nantou residents would vote on.

In the eastern region, covering Hualien and Taitung, the pan-blue camp won the majority of votes yesterday, as was the case four years ago.

Huang Hsien-tung (黃憲東), spokesman for the DPP's Hualien County campaign headquarters, said before the voting that highway construction might have a large effect on this year's voting.

"Hualien has traditionally voted for the KMT. The debate over whether to continue construction on the Suao-Hualien Expressway has affected the vote," Huang said.
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