Hualien chief snubs KMT's Chan Chun-po

Tu Li-hua, the ruling party's nominee for magistrate of Hualien, was the first one to receive the form at the election commission, but the outgoing chief executive, Hsieh Shen-shan, cold-shouldered KMT secretary-general Chan Chun-po trying to mediate in her rivalry with an undeclared candidate and another who is running as an independent.

Registration of candidacy must be completed between October 5 and 9.

Accompanied by a former Hualien magistrate, Chan visited the county government early in the morning to see Hsieh, who, however, made them cool their heels.

Hsieh supports his deputy magistrate Chang Chih-ming, who bolted the KMT to run in the year-end election against Tu.

With Hsieh's support and the help of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), Chang has five-to-two chances to win the race scheduled for December 5 against KMT lawmaker Fu Kun-chi, who is ready to quit the ruling party to join in the fray.

A local political boss, Fu was barred from the primaries because he had been convicted of insider trading and sentenced to 10 years in prison. That, however, does not disqualify him for running and getting elected so long as the Supreme Court has not handed down a guilty verdict to close his case.

Fu said he isn't seeking support from the opposition party that has all but decided not to field its own candidate in the magistracy election in Hualien. Even without DPP support, Fu is strongly favored to win.

“I'm facing an uphill struggle,” Tu admitted.

In Nantou, the KMT is meeting with unexpected trouble. Chen Chih-pin resigned as Nantou's cultural chief to run against his magistrate Lee Chao-ching, the KMT nominee who is seeking a second term. Criticizing Lee for not approving his retirement, Chen said he had to quit to stand for magistrate of the land-locked county in central Taiwan.

“He is a bad magistrate,” Chen said. “I'm running to take his place,” he told cheering supporters.

The KMT's vote support in Nantou is split between Chen and Lee, increasing the odds of former DPP lawmaker Lee Wen-chung to get elected in Nantou.

The intraparty rivalries in Yunlin couldn't be solved, though the KMT tried to get a lawmaker at large to be appointed as a commissioner of the National Security Council and give the vacant seat to Hsu Shu-po, director of the party's Yunlin council.

Chairman of the KMT Wu Poh-hsiung himself tried to mediate in order just to persuade Hsu to support a nominee to replace Chang Li-shan, a younger sister of local boss Chang Yung-wei.

The ruling party has to choose a nominee today or tomorrow at the latest.

She withdrew from the election last Monday, complaining that she and her brother were maligned by another local boss Chang Hui-yen, who bolted the KMT to run for a legislative by-election and lost.

Chang Hui-yen did not rule out the possibility of running for magistrate of Yunlin.

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