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🇹🇼 Taiwan /Elections & Politics

New Taipei mayoral race heats up as poll shows challenger leading incumbent

From Liberty Times · () Chinese

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

At a glance

News Named sources New plan
  • A recent poll shows Democratic Progressive Party candidate Su Chiao-hui leading Kuomintang candidate Hou Yu-ih in the New Taipei mayoral race.
  • DPP City Councilor Yen Wei-tzu attributed Hou's declining support to five perceived failures in his public image and policy proposals.
  • Yen cited issues including family background controversies, policy missteps, questions about integrity, and engineering project criticisms as reasons for Hou's faltering campaign.

The race for New Taipei mayor is intensifying, with a new poll revealing Democratic Progressive Party candidate Su Chiao-hui ahead of Kuomintang contender Hou Yu-ih. Su leads by 37.8% to Hou's 32.2%, a margin of 5.6%.

Su Chiao-hui leads by 37.8% to Hou Yu-ih's 32.2%, a margin of 5.6%.

— Yen Wei-tzuCommenting on the latest poll results in the New Taipei mayoral race.

New Taipei City Councilor Yen Wei-tzu of the DPP pointed to five key areas where Hou's public image, or "ren she," has allegedly crumbled since he announced his candidacy 170 days ago. These include controversies surrounding his family background, policy gaffes, integrity concerns, engineering project issues, and online missteps.

Yen highlighted several specific criticisms. She mentioned a controversy involving Hou's brother in his hometown and questioned Hou's policy proposals, citing an AI-generated image for a "ladybug bus" and errors regarding the Banqiao Station's exterior. Yen also raised concerns about Hou's alleged violation of the "revolving door" clause after leaving the Kaohsiung city government and financial questions surrounding a duplex luxury apartment in Banqiao.

Hou Yu-ih's 'ren she' has crumbled in five key areas.

— Yen Wei-tzuExplaining the reasons behind Hou Yu-ih's declining poll numbers.

Further criticisms focused on Hou's engineering expertise, with Yen noting that side drain cleaning in Taipei City during his tenure as deputy mayor lagged behind that of former Mayor Ko Wen-je. She also pointed to a delayed, over-budget "mushroom sunshade" project and a rusted bus stop shelter, both attributed to his supervision. Online, Hou faced ridicule for misstating a bus route and for claiming to have served in Taipei County during the 1999 earthquake, when he was actually working in Taipei City.

We welcome the investigation by the judiciary.

— Hou Yu-ihResponding to allegations of violating the 'revolving door' clause.

Hou's campaign has refuted these allegations, with Hou stating he welcomes investigation into the "revolving door" clause and that his financial disclosures are accurate. They also claimed the questioned funds were family income and that a mortgage on their previous home secured the down payment for their current residence, accusing the DPP of smear tactics.

The questioned 6 million was family income, not his alone.

— Hou Yu-ih's CampaignClarifying financial disclosures amidst integrity concerns.
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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