Taipei: The Taiwan People's Party (TPP) on Sunday announced its decision to halt all electoral cooperation with the Kuomintang (KMT) in Hsinchu County. This move comes after both parties, despite being allied opposition, refused to defer to each other's preferred candidate in the Zhubei City mayor's race.
According to Focus Taiwan, the situation intensified on Thursday, the penultimate day for formal candidacy registration, when the KMT's Wu Hsu-chih and TPP's Chiu Chen-yuan both registered to run for the position of Zhubei mayor in Taiwan's upcoming local elections on November 28. They will compete against Tseng Sheng-kai of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and independent candidate Li Chen-hsiu, a former TPP lawmaker expelled from the party in April.
While Wu initially attempted to mitigate the tension between KMT and TPP, suggesting that cooperation was still possible, comments from Hsu Hsin-ying, the KMT's nominee for Hsinchu County magistrate, exacerbated the situation. Hsu stated in an interview that no agreement existed on candidate deferral in Zhubei and that the TPP had not committed to supporting a primary.
In response, TPP Chairman Huang Kuo-chang accused the KMT and Hsu of reneging on their promises and further inflaming the issue by publicly denying the existence of any agreement. Following these developments, the TPP's Central Committee resolved to suspend electoral cooperation with the KMT across all races in Hsinchu County.
TPP Secretary-General Chou Yu-hsiu emphasized the damage inflicted on the trust between the two parties, urging TPP members to support their nominee in the Zhubei race. Chou warned that any TPP members who publicly endorse or appear alongside an opponent would face disciplinary actions, including the potential for expulsion. It remains unclear if Chou's warning was directed more toward supporters of the KMT's candidate or the independent Li Chen-hsiu.
The alliance between the KMT and TPP, established in March, aimed to coordinate candidates and collaborate on policy positions for the November 28 elections. The agreement entailed TPP support for KMT nominees in various regions, while the KMT endorsed TPP's candidate in Chiayi City and agreed to jointly support independents in other areas.
Hsinchu County, where the Zhubei race takes place, has gained significant importance due to its proximity to the Hsinchu Science Park. The KMT's Hsu Hsin-ying, running for Hsinchu County magistrate, previously founded the Minkuotang, a KMT splinter party, in 2015. Wu Hsu-chih, the KMT's candidate for Zhubei, also has ties to Minkuotang, having served as its chairman. In the upcoming magistrate election, Hsu will face off against Cheng Chao-fang, the current DPP mayor of Zhubei, as the TPP has not fielded a candidate in this race.