Campaign for Taiwan's Jan. 13 elections to officially start Saturday

Taipei, Dec. 15 (CNA) The campaign for Taiwan's presidential and legislative elections will officially start Saturday and run for a period of 28 days until Jan. 12, the Central Election Commission (CEC) said Friday.

The permitted hours that candidates are allowed to hold their activities related to the election campaign will be from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily, CEC Chairperson Lee Chin-yung (李進勇) said at a press conference.

Meanwhile, the order in which candidates will be listed on Taiwan's presidential ballot on Jan. 13, 2024, was also officially announced by Lee at the event, after a lottery was conducted earlier this week.

Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) of the Taiwan People's Party and his running mate Wu Hsin-ying (吳欣盈) secured the top position on the ballot, while Lai Ching-te (賴清德) and Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴) of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party drew the second position, and Hou Yu-ih (侯友宜) and Jaw Shau-kong (趙少康) of the main opposition Kuomintang placed third.

Approximately 19.5 million eligible voters, including nearly 1.03 million first-time voters will be able to cast ballots at 17,794 polling stations around the country that will be open from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., the commission said.

Taiwan does not allow absentee ballots or early voting.

According to CEC Vice Chairperson Chen Chao-chien (陳朝建), the exact number of eligible voters will be announced on Jan. 9.

During the press conference, Lee also urged the local media to adhere to the principles of impartiality and fairness when reporting on election-related issues.

Regarding public opinion polls, Lee said such activities need to list key details, including the name of the organization conducting the surveys, the time, method, numbers, margin of error, and source of funding.

In the 10 days leading up the Jan. 13 elections, however, it will be against to the law to cite, publish, disseminate, report, or comment publicly on any opinion polls pertaining to the elections or the candidates, he said.

The publication of public opinion polls related to the upcoming presidential and legislative elections, Lee explained, will not be permitted starting Jan. 3.

According to the CEC, the prohibition extends to political parties, the news media, polling companies, and individuals.