Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Wu Den-yih (吳敦義) yesterday lauded the party’s performance in Saturday’s legislative by-elections, saying it has made headway narrowing the margins between the KMT and the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) in traditionally deep-green areas.
Wu made the remarks in response to media queries about whether the KMT’s failure to secure more legislative seats in the by-elections means that the so-called “Han wave” in the lead-up to Kaohsiung Mayor Han Kuo-yu’s (韓國瑜) election last year has waned.
“We cannot look at it like that,” Wu said, adding that New Taipei City’s third electoral district in Sanchong District (三重) has traditionally been a deep-green area.
Photo: CNA
Compared with past election results in Sanchong, which showed a margin of almost 20 percent between the DPP and the KMT, Wu said that his party reduced the gap to about 5 percent this time.
Tainan has long been a DPP stronghold, but despite all-out campaign efforts by the DPP, its candidate, Kuo Kuo-wen (郭國文), only defeated the KMT’s Hsieh Lung-chieh (謝龍介) by 3 percent, he said.
“Significantly narrowing the margins is progress in itself,” he said.
The KMT only won in Changhua County, while the DPP secured two seats, in New Taipei City and Tainan, and independent Chen Yu-chen (陳玉珍) claimed victory over the KMT candidate in Kinmen County.
Asked whether the KMT would continue to rely on the “Han wave” in next year’s presidential and legislative elections, Wu said that every vote would require a serious effort by all party members, especially given the narrow margins between the DPP and the KMT at the moment.
Separately yesterday, former New Taipei City mayor Eric Chu (朱立倫) of the KMT, who has launched a presidential bid, said that the KMT should endeavor to become a party that can inspire people’s support, rather than trying to be the “less detestable” party.
Vice Premier Chen Chi-mai (陳其邁) in a video on Facebook on Saturday said that while the results of the legislative by-elections did not mean victory for the DPP, they showed that the electorate is willing to give the party an opportunity to improve.
Additional reporting by CNA
Taiwan is to commence mass production of the Tien Kung (天弓, “Sky Bow”) III, IV and V missiles by the second quarter of this year if the legislature approves the government’s NT$1.25 trillion (US$39.78 billion) special defense budget, an official said yesterday. Commenting on condition of anonymity, a defense official with knowledge of the matter said that the advanced systems are expected to provide crucial capabilities against ballistic and cruise missiles for the proposed “T-Dome,” an advanced, multi-layered air defense network. The Tien Kung III is an air defense missile with a maximum interception altitude of 35km. The Tien Kung IV and V
The disruption of 941 flights in and out of Taiwan due to China’s large-scale military exercises was no accident, but rather the result of a “quasi-blockade” used to simulate creating the air and sea routes needed for an amphibious landing, a military expert said. The disruptions occurred on Tuesday and lasted about 10 hours as China conducted live-fire drills in the Taiwan Strait. The Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) said the exercises affected 857 international flights and 84 domestic flights, affecting more than 100,000 travelers. Su Tzu-yun (蘇紫雲), a research fellow at the government-sponsored Institute for National Defense and Security Research, said the air
A strong continental cold air mass is to bring pollutants to Taiwan from tomorrow, the Ministry of Environment said today, as it issued an “orange” air quality alert for most of the country. All of Taiwan except for Hualien and Taitung counties is to be under an “orange” air quality alert tomorrow, indicating air quality that is unhealthy for sensitive groups. In China, areas from Shandong to Shanghai have been enveloped in haze since Saturday, the ministry said in a news release. Yesterday, hourly concentrations of PM2.5 in these areas ranged from 65 to 160 micrograms per cubic meter (mg/m³), and pollutants were
Taiwan’s armed forces have established response protocols for a wide range of sudden contingencies, including the “Wan Chun Plan” to protect the head of state, the Ministry of Defense (MND) said today. After US President Donald Trump on Saturday launched a series of airstrikes in Venezuela and kidnapped Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, concerns have been raised as to whether China would launch a similar “decapitation strike” on Taiwan. The armed forces regularly coordinate with relevant agencies and practice drills to ensure preparedness for a wide range of scenarios, Vice Minister of National Defense Hsu Szu-chien (徐斯儉) told reporters before a
RSS