Five pairs of candidates drew lots yesterday at the Central Election Commission (CEC) to determine the order their names will appear on the ballots for the March 18 presidential election -- the last formal procedure before the official campaign period begins on Feb. 19.
All the presidential and vice-presidential candidates -- except the KMT's Lien Chan (
The coveted number 1 position was drawn by independent candidate James Soong (宋楚瑜) and his running mate Chang Chao-hsiung (張昭雄), who were also first to pick.
Soong immediately shouted his lucky slogan, "Taiwan is the first and we will lead in the forefront" (
DPP candidate Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) and running mate Annette Lu (呂秀蓮) were the second pair to draw and they pulled "5." "Five means that in the fifth month of the year [May] we will be the new presidential team," Chen said.
The third pair to draw was the KMT's Lien-Siew ticket, but only vice presidential hopeful Vincent Siew (
"President Lee Teng-hui (
New Party candidate Li Ao (
"According to the official history of the ROC, there were five other presidents, starting with Yuan Shih-kai (
Feng criticized Lien's absence, saying he was showing his disrespect for the CEC and setting a bad example for democracy.
But Lien's spokesman dismissed Feng's criticism, saying the vice-president was with grassroot supporters in Taoyuan County.
There was no surprise about the number the last pair to draw received. Independent candidate Hsu Hsin-liang (
Following the draw the candidates made speeches to their supporters, declaring the start of their campaigns even though the official campaign period doesn't begin until 30 days before the election -- this Saturday.
TRAGEDY STRIKES TAIPEI: The suspect died after falling off a building after he threw smoke grenades into Taipei Main Station and went on a killing spree in Zhongshan A 27-year-old suspect allegedly threw smoke grenades in Taipei Main Station and then proceeded to Zhongshan MRT Station in a random killing spree that resulted in the death of the suspect and two other civilians, and seven injured, including one in critical condition, as of press time last night. The suspect, identified as a man surnamed Chang Wen (張文), allegedly began the attack at Taipei Main Station, the Taipei Fire Department said, adding that it received a report at 5:24pm that smoke grenades had been thrown in the station. One man in his 50s was rushed to hospital after a cardiac arrest
A car bomb killed a senior Russian general in southern Moscow yesterday morning, the latest high-profile army figure to be blown up in a blast that came just hours after Russian and Ukrainian delegates held separate talks in Miami on a plan to end the war. Kyiv has not commented on the incident, but Russian investigators said they were probing whether the blast was “linked” to “Ukrainian special forces.” The attack was similar to other assassinations of generals and pro-war figures that have either been claimed, or are widely believed to have been orchestrated, by Ukraine. Russian Lieutenant General Fanil Sarvarov, 56, head
SAFETY FIRST: Double the number of police were deployed at the Taipei Marathon, while other cities released plans to bolster public event safety Authorities across Taiwan have stepped up security measures ahead of Christmas and New Year events, following a knife and smoke bomb attack in Taipei on Friday that left four people dead and 11 injured. In a bid to prevent potential copycat incidents, police deployments have been expanded for large gatherings, transport hubs, and other crowded public spaces, according to official statements from police and city authorities. Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) said the city has “comprehensively raised security readiness” in crowded areas, increased police deployments with armed officers, and intensified patrols during weekends and nighttime hours. For large-scale events, security checkpoints and explosives
PUBLIC SAFETY: The premier said that security would be tightened in transport hubs, while President Lai commended the public for their bravery The government is to deploy more police, including rapid response units, in crowded public areas to ensure a swift response to any threats, President William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday after a knife attack killed three people and injured 11 in Taipei the previous day. Lai made the remarks following a briefing by the National Police Agency on the progress of the investigation, saying that the attack underscored the importance of cooperation in public security between the central and local governments. The attack unfolded in the early evening on Friday around Taipei Main Station’s M7 exit and later near the Taipei MRT’s Zhongshan
RSS