ELECTIONS 2022/KMT mayors of New Taipei, Taichung to seek reelection

Taipei, Aug. 17 (CNA) Mayors Hou Yu-ih (侯友宜) and Lu Shiow-yen (盧秀燕) of New Taipei and Taichung, respectively, confirmed Wednesday that they will stand again as the Kuomintang (KMT) mayoral candidates in the local government elections, which are scheduled for later this year.

During a meeting of the KMT Central Standing Committee, Hou and Lu confirmed their reelection bid, announcing formally that they will seek a second four-year term as mayors of Taiwan's two most populous cities.

At a press conference after the meeting, Hou said he will soon remind voters of the achievements of the New Taipei City government over the past four years under his leadership and he will also detail his platform for the next four years.

Hou, 65, said he will continue to prioritize his mayoral duties, even during his reelection campaign, as he thinks that maintaining New Taipei's progress and the "good lives" of its residents would guarantee an election victory.

Having served for two terms as deputy mayor of New Taipei, Hou was elected mayor in 2018, winning by a 14-percent margin against his main opponent Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP).

Prior to 2010, Hou had held positions as head of the National Police Agency and the Central Police University.

In the mayoral elections on Nov. 26 this year, his challenger will be Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) of the DPP, who was mayor of Taichung 2014-2018 and is currently Taiwan's ambassador-at-large for the central government's digital New Southbound Policy initiatives.

Meanwhile, Lu, 60, pledged to "spare no effort" to maintain the support of Taichung voters, saying she believes they will make a "fair choice" when they compare her policies and leadership skills to those of the other candidates.

Her challenger will be Deputy Legislative Speaker Tsai Chi-chang (蔡其昌) of the DPP.

● DPP names candidates for Taipei, New Taipei mayoral races

● Deputy legislative speaker to run for Taichung mayor

A journalist-turned politician, Lu had served as a legislator for nearly two decades before her run for Taichung mayor in 2018, when she unseated Lin.

Commenting Wednesday on the confirmation of the two KMT mayoral candidates, the party's Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) said they were the KMT's "best" picks, given their achievements as the heads of the local governments in the two cities over the past four years.

Hou currently has the highest approval rating among the mayors in Taiwan's six special municipalities, which indicates that New Taipei residents are pleased with his performance, Chu said.

In Taichung, meanwhile, Lu's efforts to build the city's infrastructure and address its air pollution problem have been widely acclaimed by city residents, Chu said.

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