2 more KMT lawmakers to face recall votes on Aug. 23

Taipei, July 2 (CNA) Two Kuomintang (KMT) lawmakers from Nantou County, Ma Wen-chun (馬文君) and Yu Hao (游顥), will face recall votes on Aug. 23, said the Central Election Commission (CEC), with the total number of KMT lawmakers facing recall votes now reaching 26.

Initiated by civil society organizations and backed by the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), the unprecedented recall campaign targeting KMT lawmakers seeks to unseat nearly all KMT legislators elected on Jan. 13, 2024.

The CEC previously announced that recall motions against 24 KMT lawmakers have been approved, with voting scheduled on July 26.

These lawmakers include KMT legislative caucus whip Fu Kun-chi (傅崐萁) and lawmakers from Taipei, Wang Hung-wei (王鴻薇), Hsu Chiao-hsin (徐巧芯), Lee Yen-hsiu (李彥秀), Lo Chih-chiang (羅智強), and Lai Shyh-bao (賴士葆), as well as others across Taiwan.

Other than KMT lawmakers, suspended Hsinchu Mayor Ann Kao (高虹安), formerly a member of the Taiwan People's Party, also faces a recall vote on July 26.

The CEC said the recall vote for Ma and Yu is set for Aug. 23 due to the limited administrative capacity of the Nantou County Election Commission and the timeline required for recall procedures.

Ma told CNA that she and her team are prepared for the battle and confident in her job performance and ability to defeat the recall motion.

Yu commented that Nantou County deserves true democracy, and he and his colleagues should not be slandered as "impurities," a phrase recently used by President Lai Ching-te (賴清德).

He added that the recall campaign is a poorly disguised effort to overturn the will of the Taiwanese public who elected the KMT lawmakers in a national legislative election in January 2024 after only 18 months into their elected term of office.

Yu urged citizens to vote against the recalls.

The CEC noted that the two targeted lawmakers are required to submit an official "statement of defense" before July 15, and related televised briefing will take place from Aug. 13-22.

Recall proposals for five other KMT lawmakers -- Lo Ming-tsai (羅明才), Johnny Chiang (江啟臣), Yang Chiung-ying (楊瓊瓔), Yen Kuan-heng (顏寬恒), and Lin Szu-ming (林思銘) -- are still waiting for CEC review.