There was a flurry of campaign activities by the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) yesterday, from canvassing to overnight rallies, amid a last-minute dash to garner votes across Taiwan ahead of today’s nine-in-one local elections.
The KMT is confident it has secured a decisive margin in the top-ticket races in 15 counties and cities, but is deadlocked in three and falling behind in four, KMT Organizational Development Committee chairwoman Hsu Yu-chen (許宇甄) said.
Taipei, New Taipei City, Hsinchu County and Taichung are among the races it considers safe, Hsu said.
Photo: CNA
The mayoral elections in Keelung and Hsinchu City, and the commissioner race in Miaoli County are locked in a dead heat, while the KMT is trailing in Pingtung and Chiayi counties, as well as in Kaohsiung and Tainan, which are traditional strongholds of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), she said.
Separately, a Central News Agency (CNA) analysis pegged Taipei and Taoyuan as races that remain in play.
Taipei historically leans toward the KMT, but the candidacy of former Taipei deputy mayor Vivian Huang (黃珊珊) — an independent candidate for Taipei mayor backed by the Taiwan People’s Party — might split the pan-blue vote.
Photo: CNA
The race for the seat being vacated by Taoyuan Mayor Cheng Wen-tsan (鄭文燦) of the DPP has led to a four-way battle between DPP Legislator Cheng Yun-peng (鄭運鵬), former premier Simon Chang (張善政) of the KMT, former legislator and DPP founding member Cheng Pao-ching (鄭寶清) and TPP Legislator Lai Hsiang-ling (賴香伶).
The KMT’s campaign rallies in the six special municipalities were broadcast on TVBS News last night.
A rally for Legislator Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安), the KMT’s candidate for Taipei mayor, at Taiwan Cement Corp’s Taipei plant was the biggest of the rallies, KMT Legislator Hung Meng-kai (洪孟楷) told a news conference in Taipei, adding that the party expected record-breaking attendance.
Chiang earlier toured Taipei’s 12th district in a campaign truck as part of final canvassing while playing up his moderate image.
If he were elected, Chiang said that he would continue the policies of Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) and incorporate good proposals from opponents.
He said that his aim was to be “an executively competent and inclusive mayor.”
He said that the DPP’s “arrogant” and “dishonest” handling of the COVID-19 vaccine policy was a betrayal of public trust, taking a shot at the DPP’s candidate, Chen Shih-chung (陳時中), who was minister of health and welfare for much of the local outbreak.
KMT Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) was on the road with Chang in Taoyuan and in Keelung with Legislator Hsieh Kuo-liang (謝國樑) — the party’s mayoral candidate there.
New Taipei City Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜), who is seeking re-election, held a campaign rally at Banciao Stadium, with organizers saying that attendance reached 20,000 people at 6:30pm.
Former president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) stumped for KMT candidates in Keelung, Taoyuan, Miaoli County and Hsinchu County, and was expected to return to Keelung in the evening.
Speaking on the sidelines at Chang’s campaign event, Ma told reporters that the KMT is doing well in Taipei, New Taipei City and Keelung, while Chang’s electoral position in Taoyuan has improved significantly over the past few weeks.
Chinese spouse and influencer Guan Guan’s (關關) residency permit has been revoked for repeatedly posting pro-China videos that threaten national security, the National Immigration Agency confirmed today. Guan Guan has said many controversial statements in her videos posted to Douyin (抖音), including “the red flag will soon be painted all over Taiwan” and “Taiwan is an inseparable part of China,” and expressing hope for expedited reunification. The agency last year received multiple reports alleging that Guan Guan had advocated for armed reunification. After verifying the reports, the agency last month issued a notice requiring her to appear and explain her actions. Guan
GIVE AND TAKE: Blood demand continues to rise each year, while fewer young donors are available due to the nation’s falling birthrate, a doctor said Blood donors can redeem points earned from donations to obtain limited edition Formosan black bear travel mugs, the Kaohsiung Blood Center said yesterday, as it announced a goal of stocking 20,000 units of blood prior to the Lunar New Year. The last month of the lunar year is National Blood Donation Month, when local centers seek to stockpile blood for use during the Lunar New Year holiday. The blood demand in southern Taiwan — including Tainan and Kaohsiung, as well as Chiayi, Pingtung, Penghu and Taitung counties — is about 2,000 units per day, the center said. The donation campaign aims to boost
The Kaohsiung Tourism Bureau audited six hotels in an effort to prevent price gouging ahead of Korean band BTS’ concert tour in the city scheduled for Nov. 19, 21 and 22 this year. The bureau on Friday said that the audits — conducted in response to allegations of unfair pricing posted on social media — found no wrongdoing. These establishments included the local branches of Chateau de Chine, Hotel Nikko, My Humble House, and Grand Hai Lai, it said, adding that the Consumer Protection Commission would have penalized price gougers had the accusations been substantiated. The bureau said the Tourism Development Act
The military yesterday said it has located the flight data recorder, or black box, of an F-16V jet that disappeared off eastern Taiwan earlier this month, and it would soon deploy a salvage team to try to retrieve it. Air Force Command Headquarters said that while it had pinned down the location of the black box, it was still searching for the aircraft’s sole pilot, air force Captain Hsin Po-yi (辛柏毅). Without providing details, the air force said it had located the black box days after detecting some intermittent signals and would now engage a team of professionals to retrieve it. The air
RSS