Yilan County Race Widens Beyond Blue-Green Rivalry as Two Independents Register

Yilan’s county magistrate race is no longer the expected blue-green duel. Two independent candidates have entered the contest, giving voters a four-way field as registration for Taiwan’s year-end local elections continues.

Chen Hongyi, a 52-year-old technology engineer, registered first on the opening day. Liu Canhui, 63, from Yuanshan Township, followed on the second day. Their entries join Kuomintang candidate Wu Zongxian, who completed registration on the morning of Oct. 1, and Democratic Progressive Party candidate Lin Guozhang, who was expected to register the following morning.

Chen recently moved to Sanxing Township from another county and works in northern Taiwan during the week, returning to Yilan on weekends. His political background is largely unknown, and his surprise candidacy has drawn local attention. He marked his policy platform as “do not agree to make public,” leaving his campaign ideas and reasons for running unclear.

Liu is a local resident of Yuanshan Township who has previously run for township chief and township representative. His most recent campaign came in a 2024 by-election for a Yilan County council seat, where he lost by 58 votes. His bid for county magistrate has added another point of interest to the race, although his detailed campaign platform was not immediately known.

Yilan’s election commission said 71 people completed registration across the county on Oct. 1. The total included two county magistrate candidates, seven county council candidates, 18 township and city representatives, and 44 village and neighborhood chiefs. No candidates registered for township or city mayoral races.