Hau Lung-bin returns to KMT fold to seek Taipei post

Li said Hau was as "incompetent" as Ma, citing the city's garbage bag scheme as one example of his ineffectiveness.

Li also described the KMT as a "rotten" and "stinky" party and vowed to stay in the Taipei race to show the public that the KMT does not represent the entire pan-blue camp.

Meanwhile, Deputy Mayor Yeh declined to say yesterday whether or not he will run.

Expectations of his candidacy arose after former deputy mayor Ou Chin-der (歐晉德), a close aide of Ma's and reportedly Ma's preferred successor, decided not to run.

"People in the city government, the city council and the grassroots all expected Ou to run" Yeh told the Taipei Times. "I will try to persuade him to join the race, and won't consider running until he says no again."