Billed as an injection of new blood into the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT), Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) is to advance to the next round of the party’s primary for next year’s legislative elections, as poll results published on Sunday showed that his rival, KMT Legislator Lo Shu-lei (羅淑蕾), had failed to secure a lead of more than 5 percent.
Chiang, 37, is the son of former KMT vice chairman John Chiang (蔣孝嚴) and a fourth-generation descendant of Chiang Kai-shek (蔣介石).
The KMT’s primary election guidelines stipulate that nominations for legislative elections are given only when a hopeful has established a lead greater than 5 percent over his or her closest rival in opinion polls.
Photo: CNA
In the absence of a clear victor, aspirants vying for the same electoral district nomination can either choose to conduct negotiations among themselves or enter a primary election.
Chiang Wan-an said that he has been successful in making himself known to the public since announcing his bid on March 29 to run for the legislative seat for Taipei’s third constituency covering the districts of Zhongshan (中山) and Songshan (松山).
“At first, nobody knew who I was, with some even saying they thought that I was a woman,” he said, adding that his efforts to interact with prospective voters while they wait for garbage trucks have paid off.
He said that in the early stages of the election, where poll results are paramount, his campaign strategy is to devote the majority of his limited resources to making his name known to the public.
As the campaign advances toward the primary vote, he said that the upcoming battle is to be decided on new technological frontiers, such as the Internet and via micro-donations.
He said that he holds his rivals, Lo and KMT Taipei City Councilor Wang Hung-wei (王鴻薇), in high regard, but emphasized that his greatest asset is his youth, which represents a sorely needed injection of new blood into the beleaguered ruling party — a sentiment that appears to be shared by the public.
Chiang Wan-an’s bid has been described as a quest to avenge his father’s defeat by Lo in a 2011 KMT legislative primary, a claim that he has dismissed.
Chiang said that the legislative bid is his own battle, and that his father has not taken part in the campaign — beyond from voicing support for his decision. However, Chiang Wan-an said that his father has been helping to take care of his children while he focuses on the campaign.
“My youth and my background as a lawyer are my greatest assets, as I represent a new option for the voters,” he said.
A surprised Lo said that the KMT’s electoral guidelines on a “scant” three-day opinion poll is defective, adding that she has been tireless in serving her district’s disadvantaged groups throughout her career as a lawmaker.
She added that she has obtained “some evidence” that might expose “major flaws” in the polling process, and she has informed the party leadership of her findings.
A year-long renovation of Taipei’s Bangka Park (艋舺公園) began yesterday, as city workers fenced off the site and cleared out belongings left by homeless residents who had been living there. Despite protests from displaced residents, a city official defended the government’s relocation efforts, saying transitional housing has been offered. The renovation of the park in Taipei’s Wanhua District (萬華), near Longshan Temple (龍山寺), began at 9am yesterday, as about 20 homeless people packed their belongings and left after being asked to move by city personnel. Among them was a 90-year-old woman surnamed Wang (王), who last week said that she had no plans
China might accelerate its strategic actions toward Taiwan, the South China Sea and across the first island chain, after the US officially entered a military conflict with Iran, as Beijing would perceive Washington as incapable of fighting a two-front war, a military expert said yesterday. The US’ ongoing conflict with Iran is not merely an act of retaliation or a “delaying tactic,” but a strategic military campaign aimed at dismantling Tehran’s nuclear capabilities and reshaping the regional order in the Middle East, said National Defense University distinguished adjunct lecturer Holmes Liao (廖宏祥), former McDonnell Douglas Aerospace representative in Taiwan. If
TO BE APPEALED: The environment ministry said coal reduction goals had to be reached within two months, which was against the principle of legitimate expectation The Taipei High Administrative Court on Thursday ruled in favor of the Taichung Environmental Protection Bureau in its administrative litigation against the Ministry of Environment for the rescission of a NT$18 million fine (US$609,570) imposed by the bureau on the Taichung Power Plant in 2019 for alleged excess coal power generation. The bureau in November 2019 revised what it said was a “slip of the pen” in the text of the operating permit granted to the plant — which is run by Taiwan Power Co (Taipower) — in October 2017. The permit originally read: “reduce coal use by 40 percent from Jan.
‘SPEY’ REACTION: Beijing said its Eastern Theater Command ‘organized troops to monitor and guard the entire process’ of a Taiwan Strait transit China sent 74 warplanes toward Taiwan between late Thursday and early yesterday, 61 of which crossed the median line in the Taiwan Strait. It was not clear why so many planes were scrambled, said the Ministry of National Defense, which tabulated the flights. The aircraft were sent in two separate tranches, the ministry said. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Thursday “confirmed and welcomed” a transit by the British Royal Navy’s HMS Spey, a River-class offshore patrol vessel, through the Taiwan Strait a day earlier. The ship’s transit “once again [reaffirmed the Strait’s] status as international waters,” the foreign ministry said. “Such transits by