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DPP to decide on Monday date for chairperson vote

Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) sources said yesterday that the party’s Central Executive Committee would decide on Monday whether to move up the date of the election for new party chairperson and if the poll should be held alongside two other DPP elections.

DPP Chairman Frank Hsieh (謝長廷) said on Wednesday that the election of the new chairperson should be moved up one week to avoid a leadership vacuum when his term expires on May 20, sources said.

Hsieh, who stayed on at the post after he was defeated by Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) in the presidential election, said the election for the new chairperson should be held on May 18 rather than May 25 as previously scheduled.

Hsieh said this would allow for a “seamless transition” and help avoid a situation whereby the party would find itself without a leader between May 20 and May 25.

Under the DPP charter, the party chairman, delegates and local chapter chiefs may serve two-year terms and elections are scheduled for the fourth Sunday of May, or May 25 this year.

Party sources said that given the party’s dire financial situation, it would face difficulties if it did not combine the elections. The three-in-one election would save money and help boost turnout rates, they said.

In related developments, the DPP caucus said yesterday it welcomed the idea of nominating former Presidential Office secretary-general Chen Shih-meng (陳師孟) as new party chairman.

“If he [Chen] is interested, I think he would be an ideal candidate for the job,” DPP caucus whip William Lai (賴清德) said. “But there are many outstanding members in the party. He should not be the only one candidate.”

DPP Legislator Gao Jhy-peng (高志鵬) said that Chen’s Mainlander background was a plus because the party had never had a Mainlander as chairman.

Gao said that so far no one had made a bid for party chairmanship, adding that DPP caucus whip Ker Chien-ming’s (柯建銘) call on Wednesday for coordination on choosing a new chairman rather than an election was a good idea.

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