The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) yesterday urged supporters to show patience after the popularity of its presidential candidate, New Taipei City Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜), declined in a public opinion poll.
Hou’s support rating fell from 26 percent to 18.3 percent, the lowest among the three presidential hopefuls declared so far, a monthly poll by my-formosa.com showed on Monday.
Support for Vice President William Lai (賴清德), the Democratic Progressive Party’s (DPP) presidential candidate, rose marginally from 35.4 percent to 35.8 percent, while Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) presidential candidate and Chairman Ko Wen-je’s (柯文哲) support rose from 22 percent to 25.9 percent.
Photo: Chueh Ching-lun, Taipei Times
Separately, a TVBS poll published this month showed that support for Hou stood at 30 percent, while support for Lai was 27 percent.
A TVBS poll two months earlier showed Hou with support of 32 percent and Lai with 28 percent.
KMT spokesman Lin Chia-hsing (林家興) yesterday said that Hou’s popularity should improve in light of his recent comments regarding the death penalty and the nation’s energy policy.
Hou on Monday said he believes nuclear power should be on the table for Taiwan and that he has always supported the death penalty.
The party headquarters studied the data and expect Hou’s statements to inspire support from base and swing voters, Lin said.
Asked whether the KMT’s failure so far to integrate support for Hon Hai Technology Group founder Terry Gou (郭台銘), who failed to secure the KMT’s presidential nomination, has negatively affected Hou’s popularity, Lin said the situation is out of the party leadership’s hands.
The KMT has open lines of communication with Gou and continues to hope that he will work with it to bring down the DPP administration, Lin said.
Separately yesterday, Hou refused to directly respond to reporters’ questions about his apparent drop in support.
“What is important is that we must identify issues that trouble people and ease their suffering with effective policies,” Hou said.
“We hope to build a peaceful, stable, prosperous and orderly nation,” he said. “I will brief you all on national policies concerning these points at a later time.”
Asked to comment on rumors that the KMT might replace him as its presidential candidate if his support continues to remain below 20 percent, Hou said: “We will remain united in the face of any problems, and work ceaselessly for the city with all our effort.”
Eight Chinese naval vessels and 24 military aircraft were detected crossing the median line of the Taiwan Strait between 6am yesterday and 6am today, the Ministry of National Defense said this morning. The aircraft entered Taiwan’s northern, central, southwestern and eastern air defense identification zones, the ministry said. The armed forces responded with mission aircraft, naval vessels and shore-based missile systems to closely monitor the situation, it added. Eight naval vessels, one official ship and 36 aircraft sorties were spotted in total, the ministry said.
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