The Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) plans to enlist more than 17,000 volunteers to monitor the vote-counting process during the presidential and legislative elections on Jan. 13 next year, TPP Chairman and presidential candidate Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) said yesterday.
There would likely be more than 17,000 polling stations across Taiwan for the elections, and the TPP hopes to have at least one volunteer at each to “safeguard Taiwan’s democracy,” Ko told a news conference in New Taipei City.
Political parties generally have people posted at polling stations to ensure that basic procedures are followed and to monitor the vote-counting process. They also report back the tallies to their party headquarters.
Photo: Tu Chien-jung, Taipei Times
Ko did not say when the recruiting drive would begin or end, but the party said that volunteers had to meet several criteria.
They must be eligible to vote, but cannot be candidates themselves or relatives of candidates, the TPP said.
They cannot be active military personnel, members or employees of an election commission at any level of government or polling station staff members, the TPP said, adding that they must also be under the age of 72 and be healthy enough to perform monitoring duties.
Ko also announced the launch of his campaign tour. He is to travel around Taiwan in a campaign bus in a clockwise direction, first stopping in Yilan County.
The former Taipei mayor had little to say about efforts to form a joint ticket for the presidential election with the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and its presidential candidate New Taipei Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜).
Whatever happened, the TPP “would make the most of each day to connect with the people and learn their concerns,” Ko said.
KMT Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) said that he, Hou and Ko would meet soon to discuss the issue.
Taiwan's Vice President Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴) said Saturday that she would not be intimidated by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), following reports that Chinese agents planned to ram her car during a visit to the Czech Republic last year. "I had a great visit to Prague & thank the Czech authorities for their hospitality & ensuring my safety," Hsiao said on social media platform X. "The CCP's unlawful activities will NOT intimidate me from voicing Taiwan's interests in the international community," she wrote. Hsiao visited the Czech Republic on March 18 last year as vice president-elect and met with Czech Senate leadership, including
There have been clear signs of Chinese Communist Party (CCP) attempts to interfere in the nationwide recall vote on July 26 in support of Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislators facing recall, an unnamed government official said, warning about possible further actions. The CCP is actively involved in Taiwanese politics, and interference in the recall vote is to be expected, with multiple Chinese state media and TAO attempts to discredit the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and undermine public support of their recall movement, the official said. This interference includes a smear campaign initiated this month by a pro-Beijing Hong Kong news outlet against
A week-long exhibition on modern Tibetan history and the Dalai Lama’s global advocacy opened yesterday in Taipei, featuring quotes and artworks highlighting human rights and China’s ongoing repression of Tibetans, Hong Kongers and Uighurs. The exhibition, the first organized by the Human Rights Network for Tibet and Taiwan (HRNTT), is titled “From the Snowy Ridges to the Ocean of Wisdom.” “It would be impossible for Tibetans inside Tibet to hold an exhibition like this — we can do it. because we live in a free and democratic country,” HRNTT secretary-general Tashi Tsering said. Tashi Tsering, a Taiwan-based Tibetan who has never
A first shipment of five tons of Taiwan tilapia was sent from Tainan to Singapore on Wednesday, following an order valued at NT$600,000 (US$20,500) placed with a company in the city. The products, including frozen whole fish and pre- cooked fish belly, were dispatched from Jiangjun Fishing Harbor, where a new aquatic processing and logistics center is under construction. At the launch, Tainan Mayor Huang Wei-che (黃偉哲) called the move a “breakthrough,” marking Taiwan’s expansion into the Singaporean tilapia market. Taiwan’s tilapia exports have traditionally focused on the United States, Canada, and the Middle East, Huang said, adding that the new foothold in
RSS