Although the Taiwan Solidarity Union (TSU) won more than 1.1 million votes nationwide and three at-large seats in the 2012 legislative elections, TSU Secretary-General Lin Chi-chia (林志嘉) said it would be difficult for it to do better in January’s elections, despite the rise of a third political force in the country.
The TSU has not given up on the idea of winning district representation, and it is preparing to nominate five candidates, as it seeks to cooperate with the Democratic Progressive Party, Lin said.
In Taipei, the party is eyeing TSU Taipei City Councilor Chen Chien-ming’s (陳建銘) daughter, Chen Si-yu, (陳思宇) to run in the Beitou (北投) and Shilin (士林) districts and Hsiao Ya-tan (蕭亞譚) for the Nangang (南港) and Neihu (內湖) districts.
The TSU is interested in running Chou Ni-an (周倪安) for the Yonghe District (永和) in New Taipei City, and in Taichung, Liu Kuo-lung (劉國隆) for the Beitun District (北屯) and Kao Chi-tsan (高基讚) in the Fengyuan District (豐原).
In the previous legislative elections in 2012, TSU Chairman Huang Kun-huei (黃昆輝) and National Cheng Kung University law professor Hsu Chung-hsin (許忠信) — who had gained nationwide fame for his campaign against the cross-strait Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement — toured the nation giving speeches, promising voters that each of the party’s at-large seats would be served by two rotating lawmakers.
Thanks to support from former president Lee Teng-hui (李登輝), the TSU won enough votes to have three at-large seats, which meant it could form a legislative caucus.
The TSU plans to keep its rotating seat system for January’s elections, Lin said.
While the party would not have candidates in most of the nation’s electoral districts, Huang could still campaign for the party when he attends events to promote a referendum on the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) illegitimate party assets, Lin added.
The rise of third parties, including the pro-independence Free Taiwan Party, is putting pressure on the TSU, but it would continue to defend Taiwan’s identity, Lin said.
If Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Chairperson Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文), her party’s presidential candidate, wins the January election, the pan-green camp could get more than half of the party ballots.
The DPP and the TSU together received nearly 5.4 million party ballots in the 2012 elections, which accounted for 43 percent of all party votes, Lin said.
That means that there is room for 8 percent growth, and so the TSU is cautiously optimistic about next year’s elections, Lin said.
Asked if there would be any prominent candidates on its legislators-at-large list, Lin said that is the party’s top secret right now.
However, the TSU has been in touch with Hsu, hoping to put him on the at-large list again, he said.
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