Support for Tainan Mayor William Lai (賴清德) taking part in the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) presidential primary for next year’s election continues to grow, despite his noncommittal stance.
Lai has repeatedly said he would not register for the primary.
Former presidential adviser Koo Kwang-ming (辜寬敏) recently publicly urged Lai to run for president and veteran DPP member Huang Yung-tien (黃永田) yesterday echoed the call by putting up a giant billboard in Greater Tainan.
Photo: CNA
Huang, an outspoken DPP member and longtime supporter of former president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁), placed a large billboard downtown that read: “Support Mayor Lai to run for president. DPP chairperson please withdraw,” referring to Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文).
Taiwan is in need of a prudent, conscientious president to lift a slumping economy and improve youth employment conditions, Huang said, adding that Lai is the perfect candidate, but his noncommittal stance thus far has unsettled his supporters.
Huang said he would start a campaign urging Lai to run for the DPP nomination and sign the Tainan mayor up for the party primary himself if Lai still refuses to join the election.
Although Tsai is undoubtedly conscientious and has won many approval from many voters, her defeats in two major elections — the 2012 presidential election and the 2010 New Taipei City mayoral election — might not make her a viable candidate for next year’s election, Huang said.
In response, Lai, who has constantly been ranked among the top in various media surveys on approval ratings for municipal heads, yesterday said he was grateful for Huang’s support, but that overseeing Greater Tainan is his sole concern for now.
However, while stressing that his stance remains unchanged, Lai said that he would pay Koo a visit to thank him for his support.
According to the schedule the DPP announced last week, the official announcement for the presidential primary election will be posted on Wednesday next week.
Registrations will be accepted from Feb. 12 to Feb. 16, and negotiations among the presidential hopefuls will end on Feb. 24.
The primary campaign will be held from Feb. 26 to March 15, followed by an opinion poll from March 16 to March 18 to gauge the popularity of the contenders.
In related news, DPP Legislator Yeh Yi-jin (葉宜津) yesterday announced that she would run for the DPP nomination for the next Greater Tainan mayoral election.
Because Lai must leave office when his second term expires, anyone aiming for the mayoral nominee should take the initiative, she said.
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