The KMT will support the New Party's Wang Chien-shien in the race for Taipei County commissioner, the party said yesterday.
Wang beat the KMT's candidate Lin Jih-jia (林志嘉) in an opinion poll by a margin of just 0.28 percent.
Though Wang won by a hairsbreadth, the New Party and KMT had agreed earlier to accept the results of the poll and ignore any margin of error.
PHOTO: CHIANG YING-YING, TAIPEI TIMES
Lin said he would throw his support behind Wang and would not seek any other public office. The four-term lawmaker also said he would not rule out the possibility of quitting politics for good.
"As soon as the poll results were out today, Wang, demonstrating his good intentions, proposed redoing the polls in light of the narrow margin," Lin said. "But I think this is it since we've already made a deal."
This was Lin's second failed attempt to become Taipei County commissioner. In 1997, Lin ran for the seat without the KMT's blessing after the party had nominated former Council of Labor Affairs chairman Hsieh Shen-shan (謝深山).
Lin's candidacy in that race drew votes from Hsieh. The split-ticket cost both the election, and Lin was blamed after the seat went to the DPP's Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌).
This year, the KMT had originally planned to cooperate with the People First Party (PFP) by backing a PFP candidate to compete with Su. The plan started to fall apart after former minister of justice Liao Cheng-hao (廖正豪) turned down the offer in July.
Later that month, the KMT nominated Lin, who still had a keen interest in the position.
The PFP, meanwhile, nominated its deputy secretary-general, Chin Chin-sheng (
Chin quit the race two weeks ago, with the PFP criticizing the KMT as being insincere in its pledges of cooperation.
After Chin's withdrawal, the KMT and the New Party agreed to conduct opinion polls in order to jointly select a candidate to run for Taipei County commissioner.
Having obtained the KMT's backing yesterday, Wang said he would visit both PFP Chairman James Soong (
"I still need to work hard and show my sincerity if the three parties -- including their leadership, campaign officials and supporters -- are to identify with me as the candidate representing the opposition alliance," Wang said.
PFP spokesman Liao Tsang-song (
But as to whether the PFP would take concrete actions to show their support, such as campaigning for Wang, Liao said that would depend on the development of his campaign and on public opinion.
"The votes are in the hands of the voters. The PFP should consider the opinions of our supporters too," Liao said.
The Taipei County commissioner race is expected to be an uphill battle for Su's challenger.
In opinion polls released so far, Su's approval rating has been the highest among all potential contestants.
As shown in the polls released by the KMT and New Party yesterday, which were conducted by two different polling companies, Su's approval rating ranged from 36.49 percent to 39.69 percent, leading Wang by 11.7 to 13.74 percentage points.
Wang's polls showed his support ratings ranging between 24.79 percent and 25.95 percent.
Su yesterday said the outcome of the polls showed that the so-called "opposition alliance" does not exist at all, especially in light of the fact that the PFP had refused to join the polling.
Su said Wang's participation in the race will not affect his campaign strategy.
"The party affiliation of candidates isn't important in a county commissioner's election.
"The candidate who is the most enthusiastic about serving the people, most experienced and most familiar with county administration will gain the public's support," Su said.
RULES BROKEN: The MAC warned Chinese not to say anything that would be harmful to the autonomous status of Taiwan or undermine its sovereignty A Chinese couple accused of disrupting a pro-democracy event in Taipei organized by Hong Kong residents has been deported, the National Immigration Agency said in a statement yesterday afternoon. A Chinese man, surnamed Yao (姚), and his wife were escorted by immigration officials to Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, where they boarded a flight to China before noon yesterday, the agency said. The agency said that it had annulled the couple’s entry permits, citing alleged contraventions of the Regulations Governing the Approval of Entry of People of the Mainland Area into the Taiwan Area (大陸地區人民進入台灣地區許可辦法). The couple applied to visit a family member in
CELEBRATION: The PRC turned 75 on Oct. 1, but the Republic of China is older. The PRC could never be the homeland of the people of the ROC, Lai said The People’s Republic of China (PRC) could not be the “motherland” of the people of the Republic of China (ROC), President William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday. Lai made the remarks in a speech at a Double Ten National Day gala in Taipei, which is part of National Day celebrations that are to culminate in a fireworks display in Yunlin County on Thursday night next week. Lai wished the country a happy birthday and called on attendees to enjoy the performances and activities while keeping in mind that the ROC is a sovereign and independent nation. He appealed for everyone to always love their
‘EXTREME PRESSURE’: Beijing’s goal is to ‘force Taiwan to make mistakes,’ Admiral Tang Hua said, adding that mishaps could serve as ‘excuses’ for launching a blockade China’s authoritarian expansionism threatens not only Taiwan, but the rules-based international order, the navy said yesterday, after its top commander said in an interview that the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) could blockade the nation at will. The object of Beijing’s expansionist activities is not limited to Taiwan and its use of pressure is not confined to specific political groups or people, the navy said in a statement. China utilizes a mixture of cognitive warfare and “gray zone” military activities to pressure Taiwan, the navy said, adding that PLA sea and air forces are compressing the nation’s defensive depth. The navy continues to
MISSILE MISSION: The Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology said it does not make policy, but would be glad to obtain certification to assemble the missiles The Ministry of National Defense-affiliated Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology is in the process of getting certified to assemble an additional 1,985 Stinger missiles on top of those from US arms sales, a senior defense official said yesterday. Washington is to send a team to Taiwan to evaluate the institute’s manufacturing capabilities and information security, said the official, who commented on condition of anonymity. The ministry initially bought 500 missiles for the army and navy, but later increased the order to 2,485 in response to an increase in Beijing’s military activities around the nation, and to meet the army’s urgent need
RSS