More than 55 percent of the public supports combining the legislative and presidential elections despite the possible problems that may accompany combined elections, an opinion poll conducted by the Central Election Commission showed.
“Initially, 52.3 percent of respondents supported combined elections, with 28.8 opposed and 18.9 percent expressing no preference, before they were informed about the possible problems that could come with combined or separated elections,” the commission said in a press release yesterday.
“However, after they were informed of issues that could accompany the combined or separate elections, the support rate for a combined election grew to 55.7 percent, while 32.6 percent supported holding the elections separately and 11.7 percent had no preference,” the statement said.
The commission told respondents that possible problems with a combined election include a longer lame-duck period for a president if the incumbent failed to be re-elected, since legislative elections must be held prior to the official swearing-in date for lawmakers on Feb. 1.
Also, differences between the Election and Recall Act for Public Servants (公職人員選舉罷免法) and the Presidential and Vice Presidential Election and Recall Act (總統副總統選舉罷免法) may cause technical problems if the two elections were held together, the statement said.
On the other hand, the commission also told the respondents that combined elections could reduce costs and facilitate voting, while also reducing bipartisan conflicts that occur during election campaigns, the press release said.
“Comparing the results before and after receiving the information about the consequences of separate or combined elections, there is no significant difference in public opinion,” the statement said.
Central Election Commission Secretary-General Teng Tien-yu (鄧天祐) yesterday said that despite the poll results, the commission has yet to make a final decision on whether the upcoming presidential and legislative elections will be combined.
“The final decision will be made during a commission meeting on Tuesday and the poll results will only be used as a reference by commission members when they make the decision,” he said.
When asked if the commission has talked to the Ministry of the Interior since the results of the poll came out, Teng said that the commission could make the decision independently and there is no need to talk to the ministry about it.
The poll was conducted last Friday and Saturday with a total of 1,657 valid samples collected from respondents aged over 20 who were randomly selected throughout the country.
Commenting on the poll, Culture and Communication Committee Director Su Jun-pin (蘇俊賓), of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT), said yesterday that the KMT respected public opinion on the issue, while reiterating that the party would not interfere with the commission’s final decision on whether to combine the two elections.
The next presidential poll is currently scheduled for March next year, while the next legislative elections are likely to be held in December this year or January next year, based on existing rules.
If a decision is made to merge the two elections, it is likely that the presidential election would be moved forward because the law requires that legislative elections be held before a new legislative session starts on Feb. 1.
ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY MO YAN-CHIH
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