Kaohsiung voters head to polls for mayoral recall

Update: Official count shows Han recall vote has passed threshold / Click here for full coverage

Kaohsiung, June 6 (CNA) The polls opened for a recall vote of Kaohsiung Mayor Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜) on Saturday, with the results expected to come in when the 1,823 polling stations across the southern Taiwanese city close at 4 p.m.

Data released by the Kaohsiung City Election Commission (KCEC) shows that the population of Kaohsiung is roughly 2.7 million, of which 2,299,981 are eligible voters.

For the recall motion to pass, at least 25 percent of the eligible voters -- 574,996 -- must vote in favor of a recall and the number of people voting for the measure must exceed the number that vote against it.

The votes will start being counted at 4 p.m., with the results expected to be known later that evening.

Han assumed office on Dec. 25, 2018, winning 53.8 percent of the votes in the Kaohsiung mayoral election that year.

However, his decision to launch an ultimately unsuccessful bid for the presidency just 10 months after taking office led local activist groups, such as WeCare Kaohsiung, to campaign for his removal.