The public no longer prizes rectitude above all else and now want its city mayors and county commissioners to be administratively capable as well as to keep their hands clean, a CommonWealth Magazine poll on attitudes toward county commissioners and city mayors showed yesterday.
The poll observed not only a general shift in areas marking the traditional backing of the pan-blue and the pan-green camps, but also the competition between the next-generation of political figures within either camp.
Half of the 10 highest-scoring officials were fresh faces on the political scene and three of the five top officials belonged to the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) — Greater Tainan Mayor William Lai (賴清德) coming in first with 72.9 points, followed by Yilan County Commissioner Lin Tsung-hsien (林聰賢) in second with 71.6 points and Chiayi County Commissioner Helen Chang (張花冠) in fourth with 68.7.
Hualien County Commissioner Fu Kun-chi (傅崑萁), an independent, dropped to seventh place with 63.8 points after facing pressure to meet his campaign pledges, while Kinmen County Commissioner Lee Wo-shi (李沃士) of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) made it to the top 10 with 61.8 points.
The poll also showed that the rankings of the mayors for the five special municipalities did not differ much from last year.
Aside from Lai ranking in the top three mayors for two consecutive years, Greater Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chu (陳菊) of the DPP ranked fifth, reflecting belief that Chen was sensitive to the needs of Greater Kaohsiung residents.
In contrast, the poll placed the mayors of New Taipei City (新北市), Taipei and Greater Taichung — all from the KMT — between the 19th and 21st positions for the second consecutive year.
Poll data also showed residents now considered rectitude as the basic standard for administrative heads and demand that their city and county leaders’ also have the capability to govern, with KMT member and Miaoli County Commissioner Liu Cheng-hung (劉政鴻) the greatest example.
Liu’s emphasis on leadership and clear goals helped him gain third place with 68.8 points, despite his involvement in the Dapu incident, in which the Miaoli County Government seized farmland to expand the Jhunan science park by blocking off roads and sending excavators into farms that were awaiting harvest. Lai’s combination of resourcefulness and transparency in city affairs put him on top in the poll.
The poll also found that the next-generation of political figures have both high efficacy in administrative affairs and political support, with Lai, Lin and Chang all receiving more than 70 percent of support when respondents were asked who they would vote for if an election were held tomorrow.
Fu, Chen, Liu and Changhua County Commissioner Cho Po-yuan (卓伯源) have all received more than 60 percent of support from residents in their cities on the question.
Typhoon Usagi yesterday had weakened into a tropical storm, but a land warning issued by the Central Weather Administration (CWA) was still in effect in four areas in southern Taiwan. As of 5pm yesterday, Tropical Storm Usagi was over waters 120km south-southwest of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), the southernmost tip of Taiwan proper, and was moving north at 9kph, CWA data showed. The storm was expected to veer northeast later yesterday. It had maximum sustained winds of 101kph, with gusts of up to 126kph, the data showed. The CWA urged residents of Kaohsiung, Pingtung County, Taitung County and the Hengchun Peninsula (恆春) to remain alert to
ONE LAST TALK: While Xi said that Taiwan was a ‘red line,’ Biden, in what is likely his last meeting with Xi as president, called for an end to China’s military activity around Taiwan China’s military intimidation and economic coercion against Taiwan are the main causes of tensions that are destabilizing peace in the Taiwan Strait, Taipei said yesterday while thanking US President Joe Biden for expressing Washington’s firm stance of maintaining peace and stability in the region. Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) met on Saturday for their third meeting and their first talks in seven months on the sidelines of the APEC forum in Lima, Peru. It was likely Biden’s last meeting as president with Xi. During their conversation, Biden reiterated the US’ opposition to any unilateral change to the “status quo” from either
Taiwan would participate in the 2026 APEC summit to be hosted by China after Beijing promised it would ensure the personal safety of attendees, Taiwanese national security sources said yesterday. The APEC Leaders’ Machu Picchu Declaration announced yesterday said that China would host the APEC summit in 2026. Beijing proposed hosting the summit shortly before this year’s gathering began on Friday, a national security official said, speaking on condition of anonymity. Many APEC members expressed concerns about China hosting the event and said that prior communication over the decision was insufficient, the official said. Taiwan brought up concerns about legal “guidelines” China announced in
MEET AND GREET: The White House, which called the interaction ‘just a handshake,’ did not immediately respond to a request for comment on whether Biden planned to visit Taiwan’s envoy to the APEC summit, Lin Hsin-i (林信義), on Friday invited US President Joe Biden to visit Taiwan. During the APEC Leaders’ Informal Dialogue, Lin, who represented President William Lai (賴清德) at the summit, spoke with Biden and expressed gratitude to the outgoing US president for his contribution to improving bilateral ties between Taipei and Washington over the past four years, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said. Lin and Biden exchanged views during the conversation, with Lin extending an invitation to Biden to visit Taiwan, it said. Biden is to step down in January next year, when US president-elect Donald Trump is
RSS