Ko Wen-je says he is closer to Chang Chun but withholds endorsement in Hualien county race

Hualien’s county magistrate race has taken on a distinctly cross-party character, with independent council speaker Chang Chun attracting figures from both the pan-green camp and the Taiwan People’s Party.

Chang registered his candidacy on Thursday morning. Democratic Progressive Party councilors and former DPP Hualien chapter chief Chiang Shu-chun accompanied him, while Taiwan People’s Party Hualien chapter chief Chang Tien-min had previously contacted him about possible cooperation.

Ko Wen-je and Huang Kuo-chang visited Hualien to support Dai Yu-wen’s registration in the Hualien mayoral election. Asked whom he would back for county magistrate, Ko said he was “more familiar with Chang Chun,” but added that he would wait and assess the candidates’ platforms and the political situation. Ko said Chang’s wife had served as chair of Ko’s Hualien women’s support group during his presidential campaign.

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I am more familiar with Chang Chun.

Ko described Hualien’s political landscape as difficult to read, pointing to the three-way contest and the unusual lineup involving the Wei family. Nationalist Party candidate Yu Shu-chen registered with the support of Fu Kun-chi and Hsu Chen-wei. Chang is running as an independent, while independent county councilor Wei Chia-hsien is competing for county magistrate and his brother, Wei Chia-yen, is running for Hualien mayor as a Kuomintang candidate.

Huang said it was still too early to decide which county candidate to support. He said the party would examine their visions for Hualien, particularly long-standing problems involving tourism, the economy and transportation. The party’s immediate strategy, he said, was to concentrate its limited resources on helping Dai win the mayoral race.

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The time is still early.