Some Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) lawmakers appear hesitant about their campaigns being tied to that of KMT presidential hopeful Hung Hsiu-chu (洪秀柱) because they are uncertain that Hung would boost their popularity.
After Hung was endorsed by the KMT’s Central Standing Committee on Wednesday, during the nomination process KMT Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) and Hung had discussed campaign strategy and proposed a joint office to run a combined presidential and legislative campaign for January’s elections.
The idea was not warmly received by some KMT lawmakers, who have doubts about the “effect of hens boosting chickens,” a term applied to politics meaning that a candidate of a higher-ranking election (hen) is so popular that they can boost the chances of winning for lower-level election candidates (chickens).
Hung’s nomination as presidential candidate is expected to be approved by the party’s national congress on July 19.
Although the “repercussions” Hung’s nomination is likely to have on the party’s legislative candidate remains to be seen, KMT Legislator Lee Ching-hua (李慶華), a seven-term lawmaker in New Taipei City, said he has feeling he will have to wage the campaign “on my own” because the party has yet to get back on its feet after its drubbing in the nine-in-one elections last year.
KMT Legislator Wang Hui-mei (王惠美) said she has seen a rise in support for Hung in her constituency in Chunghua County, but it is swing voters that Hung must actively seek out and that would require her to “shake up her campaign team to ramp up its diversity.”
KMT Legislator Liao Kuo-tung (廖國棟), who hails from Taichung, said his colleagues in central and southern Taiwan do have worries that Hung could be “far from a boost” to their campaigns.
The crux lies in whether Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng (王金平), a leading figure of the party’s localization factions, would be willing to dedicate himself to arousing public passion for the KMT, especially in terms of his connections, Liao said.
To alleviate the concerns that Hung’s nomination would make the party’s aspirants for the legislative election face an uphill battle, the KMT is considering putting forward more party heavyweights in the combined elections so that they can play the role of “hens.”
KMT Vice Chairman Hau Lung-bin (郝龍斌), the former Taipei mayor, has said he has not ruled out the possibility of running in a legislative district in southern Taiwan to “elevate the morale of the party,” while the KMT is trying to draft Vice Chairperson Huang Min-hui (黃敏惠) to run for a legislative seat in Chiayi City, where she served as mayor from 2005 to last year.
The structure of any joint office for the presidential and legislative election campaigns is still under discussion, but it would serve as a platform through which Hung and the legislative candidates could coordinate their campaign tactics and activities, KMT sources said.
The High Prosecutors’ Office yesterday withdrew an appeal against the acquittal of a former bank manager 22 years after his death, marking Taiwan’s first instance of prosecutors rendering posthumous justice to a wrongfully convicted defendant. Chu Ching-en (諸慶恩) — formerly a manager at the Taipei branch of BNP Paribas — was in 1999 accused by Weng Mao-chung (翁茂鍾), then-president of Chia Her Industrial Co, of forging a request for a fixed deposit of US$10 million by I-Hwa Industrial Co, a subsidiary of Chia Her, which was used as collateral. Chu was ruled not guilty in the first trial, but was found guilty
DEADLOCK: As the commission is unable to forum a quorum to review license renewal applications, the channel operators are not at fault and can air past their license date The National Communications Commission (NCC) yesterday said that the Public Television Service (PTS) and 36 other television and radio broadcasters could continue airing, despite the commission’s inability to meet a quorum to review their license renewal applications. The licenses of PTS and the other channels are set to expire between this month and June. The National Communications Commission Organization Act (國家通訊傳播委員會組織法) stipulates that the commission must meet the mandated quorum of four to hold a valid meeting. The seven-member commission currently has only three commissioners. “We have informed the channel operators of the progress we have made in reviewing their license renewal applications, and
‘DENIAL DEFENSE’: The US would increase its military presence with uncrewed ships, and submarines, while boosting defense in the Indo-Pacific, a Pete Hegseth memo said The US is reorienting its military strategy to focus primarily on deterring a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan, a memo signed by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth showed. The memo also called on Taiwan to increase its defense spending. The document, known as the “Interim National Defense Strategic Guidance,” was distributed this month and detailed the national defense plans of US President Donald Trump’s administration, an article in the Washington Post said on Saturday. It outlines how the US can prepare for a potential war with China and defend itself from threats in the “near abroad,” including Greenland and the Panama
Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) Chairman Huang Kuo-chang (黃國昌) yesterday appealed to the authorities to release former Taipei mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) from pretrial detention amid conflicting reports about his health. The TPP at a news conference on Thursday said that Ko should be released to a hospital for treatment, adding that he has blood in his urine and had spells of pain and nausea followed by vomiting over the past three months. Hsieh Yen-yau (謝炎堯), a retired professor of internal medicine and Ko’s former teacher, said that Ko’s symptoms aligned with gallstones, kidney inflammation and potentially dangerous heart conditions. Ko, charged with
RSS