Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Wu Ping-jui (吳秉叡) was re-elected yesterday as party caucus chief executive, while DPP Legislator Liu Shih-fang (劉世芳) replaced Chen Ting-fei (陳亭妃) as caucus secretary-general.
Wu garnered 38 votes to defeat his rival, DPP Legislator Chuang Ruei-hsiung (莊瑞雄), who received 25.
Chen renounced her candidacy ahead of the vote, leaving Liu to beat DPP Legislator Chen Ou-po (陳歐珀) 40 to 25.
The DPP caucus leadership election was held after negotiations failed to produce a consensus on who would assume the two posts.
DPP Legislator Gao Jyh-peng (高志鵬) originally signed up for the caucus chief executive race, but later withdrew.
DPP legislators Hsu Chih-chieh (許智傑) and Huang Kuo-shu (黃國書), who were runing for caucus secretary-general, also dropped out of the race.
The positions are traditionally decided through negotiations, but the competition for caucus leadership escalated to an election, as the positions are considered a stepping stone for the mayoral elections in 2018.
Wu and Gao are widely believed to be eyeing the New Taipei City mayorship, while Chen Ting-fei and Liu are said to be interested in Tainan and Kaohsiung respectively.
The race also reflected competition amongst the party’s different groups, with Wu representing former DPP chairman Su Tseng-chang’s (蘇貞昌) group, Chuang representing Representative to Japan Frank Hsieh (謝長廷) and Liu the New Tide group.
Chuang set a precedent by making a campaign leaflet to canvas votes for the first time in caucus leadership elections.
Some political observers viewed his candidacy as a move by Hsieh’s group to regain influence in the legislature, as the group suffered a major defeat in the DPP’s national congress in July with zero seats in the Central Standing Committee.
Yesterday’s vote has also sparked speculation that it might pave the way for a caucus whip election next year.
Media reports said that DPP Legislator Chen Ming-wen (陳明文) could challenge DPP caucus whip Ker Chien-ming (柯建銘), whose term expires next year.
After a caucus general assembly in the morning that failed to prevent the vote, Ker called for party solidarity regardless of the election results.
Wu disputed claims that the election reflected conflict between different “factions,” saying if there was factionalism, his group has few members, but he was nevertheless elected.
Wu reiterated the need for solidarity and sportsmanship, saying he would continue his role of smoothing communication between the Cabinet and the DPP caucus.
A magnitude 4.9 earthquake struck off Tainan at 11:47am today, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The hypocenter was 32.3km northeast of Tainan City Hall at a depth of 7.3km, CWA data showed. The intensity of the quake, which gauges the actual effect of a seismic event, measured 4 in Tainan and Chiayi County on Taiwan's seven-tier intensity scale, the data showed. The quake had an intensity of 3 in Chiayi City and County, and Yunlin County, while it was measured as 2 in Kaohsiung, Nantou County, Changhua County, Taitung County and offshore Penghu County, the data showed. There were no immediate reports of
‘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
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) is maintaining close ties with Beijing, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) said yesterday, hours after a new round of Chinese military drills in the Taiwan Strait began. Political parties in a democracy have a responsibility to be loyal to the nation and defend its sovereignty, DPP spokesman Justin Wu (吳崢) told a news conference in Taipei. His comments came hours after Beijing announced via Chinese state media that the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s Eastern Theater Command was holding large-scale drills simulating a multi-pronged attack on Taiwan. Contrary to the KMT’s claims that it is staunchly anti-communist, KMT Deputy
RESPONSE: The government would investigate incidents of Taiwanese entertainers in China promoting CCP propaganda online in contravention of the law, the source said Taiwanese entertainers living in China who are found to have contravened cross-strait regulations or collaborated with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) could be subject to fines, a source said on Sunday. Several Taiwanese entertainers have posted on the social media platform Sina Weibo saying that Taiwan “must be returned” to China, and sharing news articles from Chinese state media. In response, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) has asked the Ministry of Culture to investigate whether the entertainers had contravened any laws, and asked for them to be questioned upon their return to Taiwan, an official familiar with the matter said. To curb repeated
RSS