Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) legislators have introduced a bill to designate the day before elections as a national holiday.
The bill was put forth on Friday last week, one year ahead of Taiwan’s local government elections next year.
Photo: Wang Yi-sung, Taipei Times
DPP caucus chief executive Chung Chia-pin (鍾佳濱), one of the bill's sponsors, said yesterday that making election eve a national holiday would give voters more time to travel to the constituencies where they are registered to cast their ballots.
In Taiwan, elections are usually held on a Saturday, which means the proposed holiday would fall on a Friday, according to Chung.
Meanwhile, opposition Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) lawmaker and spokesperson Niu Hsu-ting (牛煦庭) said yesterday that the party caucus would review and consolidate a series of bills drafted by its members to introduce absentee voting in Taiwan.
The DPP, however, has long opposed absentee voting, citing concerns over potential Chinese infiltration and possible technical complications within the current electoral system.
Implementing absentee voting without proper electoral oversight mechanisms could result in unfair elections, Chung said yesterday.
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