Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Chairperson Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) presidential campaign held an accreditation ceremony in Greater Tainan last Saturday for the heads of more than 1,000 “Friends of Tsai Ing-wen” support groups. This was the party’s first outdoor rally following her selection of DPP Secretary-General Su Jia-chyuan (蘇嘉全) as her running mate in the January election. It was interesting to observe the interaction between the candidates and their supporters, on and off the stage.
The most worrying thing about Tsai’s rallies in the past has been a lack of fervor. Tsai is not the typical presidential candidate and building up voter enthusiasm is not her strong point. Some complaints were heard after Tsai’s first campaign fund-raising dinner in Greater Tainan, but the atmosphere at Saturday’s rally was rather different. As more than 1,000 group leaders arrived at the rally, with some supporters having come by car or bus from places like Baihe (白河) and Sinying (新營), which were part of Tainan County before it was merged with Tainan City last year, the registration was a bit disorganized. Despite the muddle, however, fewer complaints were heard than at the fund-raising dinner.
None of the group leaders left the rally before Tsai and Su did. After collecting their “Friends of Tsai Ing-wen” caps, flags and handbooks, they gathered into groups and started discussing the flaws of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) as they looked for places to sit. No boxed lunches, fruit, tea or snacks were provided at the rally, just cups of water. Some supporters who turned up for the rally unannounced even offered to buy “Friends of Tsai Ing-wen” caps from the earlybirds.
When Tsai and Su arrived at the venue one after another, they were greeted by long rounds of applause. An executive officer from the DPP’s Greater Tainan branch office said that the hearty cheering came as a big surprise for him. Based on his 20 years’ experience of electoral campaigning, he said: “Li-li, this is the kind of scene that you see on a winning campaign.”
One young woman, who had been a delegate to the DPP’s national congress, said: “Li-li, before this I wasn’t going to come out and vote. I wasn’t very enthusiastic, but today’s atmosphere reminds me of the DPP’s idealism and enthusiasm back in the days when it was first established.”
This young supporter immediately agreed to my suggestion of contacting old classmates from her university alumni book and setting up 50 “Friends of Tsai Ing-wen” groups.
Of course Su’s presence was an important element. Having fought his way through campaigns to become councilor, legislator and county commissioner, he knows how to speak to an audience and get them in the mood. He knows how to present Tsai’s political standpoints clearly and succinctly, and he knows the key points to get over when locked in combat with a rival party.
In his speeches, he knows what will resonate with his audience. For example, he stressed that his wife comes from Greater Tainan’s Beimen District (北門), and that he knows the state of development in southern Taiwan like the back of his hand. These are the biggest advantages of having Su as Tsai’s running mate.
You can get a better idea of how enthusiastic people are by being on the scene than from listening to commentators spouting on television. At this “Friends of Tsai Ing-wen” get-together, one could see that Tsai’s supporters are getting a lot more enthusiastic and eager to take part.
It is good to know that, in addition to consolidating support in Greater Taichung, the Su factor is making a difference in other parts of Taiwan, too.
Chiu Li-li is a Greater Tainan councilor.
Translated by Julian Clegg
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