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🇹🇼 Taiwan /Elections & Politics

Blue-white alliance fractures in Zhubei mayoral race as Li Chen-hsiu questions party leadership

From Liberty Times · () Chinese

Translated from Chinese and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

News Named sources Ongoing story
  • The Taiwan People’s Party said its proposed electoral alliance with the Kuomintang in the Zhubei mayoral race had collapsed.
  • Li Chen-hsiu, who registered as a candidate, urged both camps to calm supporters and focus on opposition coordination in 2026 and 2028.
  • The dispute involved competing claims from the TPP and KMT over who had broken an understanding and whether the parties had authority to decide the race.

The planned KMT-TPP alliance in the Zhubei mayoral election has fallen apart, exposing tensions within Taiwan’s opposition camp and prompting former TPP legislator Li Chen-hsiu to question her party’s leadership.

Li registered as a candidate for Zhubei mayor in Hsinchu County and said the internal dispute had caused considerable harm to the Taiwan People’s Party. She argued that both sides should prioritise the broader political picture and calm supporters rather than continue trading accusations.

Without 2026, there will be no 2028.

— Li Chen-hsiuLi urged opposition parties to coordinate in the 2026 local elections as a foundation for a possible 2028 change of government.

The TPP recently announced that its proposed “blue-white alliance” in the race had collapsed. The office of Hsu Hsin-ying, the KMT candidate for Hsinchu County magistrate, responded by calling for the opposition to work together to remove the DPP from office. It also said that a party without the authority to decide the matter could not have broken faith with a political ally.

TPP Chairman Huang Kuo-chang accused the KMT of failing to keep its word. KMT Chair Cheng Li-wun replied that the Zhubei contest had highly unusual circumstances and that the two parties had reached different assessments.

Work together to remove the Democratic Progressive Party from office.

— Hsu Hsin-ying’s campaign officeThe office called for cooperation after the proposed Zhubei alliance broke down.

Li said mutual accusations were inappropriate while each side presented its own version without conclusive evidence. She argued that other candidates carried political burdens and restrictions, while she had no negative baggage and could devote herself fully to public service.

She appealed to voters and the opposition camp to communicate despite their current emotions and differences. “Without 2026, there will be no 2028,” Li said, urging opposition supporters to concentrate their votes at key moments and pursue a change of governing party.

The Zhubei electoral situation has highly unusual circumstances, and the two sides made different assessments.

— Cheng Li-wunThe KMT chair explained the party’s position on the failed alliance.
About this summary

Originally published by Liberty Times in Chinese. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

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