Voting starts to recall KMT legislators, Hsinchu mayor

Taipei, July 26 (CNA) Voting in Taiwan to recall 24 opposition Kuomintang (KMT) lawmakers and the suspended independent Hsinchu mayor started at 8 a.m. Saturday as voters lined up in front of polling stations across Taiwan.

The 24 KMT lawmakers targeted were elected in January 2024 largely in the northern half of the country, an area generally considered a stronghold of the opposition.

The KMT lawmakers include 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), who were elected in electoral districts in Taipei.

In addition, Hung Meng-kai (洪孟楷) in New Taipei, who won more votes than any other lawmaker in the January 2024 Legislative election (158,596), also faces a recall vote along with four other KMT lawmakers in the city.

Also in northern Taiwan, one KMT lawmaker from Keelung, six from Taoyuan, and one from Hsinchu City have been challenged by recall votes, with three from Taichung City, central Taiwan, one from Yunlin County in the south, one from Hualien County in the east -- KMT legislative caucus whip Fu Kun-chi (傅崐萁) -- and one from Taitung County in the southeast.

In 2024, the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP)'s Lai Ching-te (賴清德) won the presidential election but the party lost its majority in the Legislative Yuan.

The KMT secured 52 seats, including 13 legislators at large, the DPP 51, including 13 legislators at large and the Taiwan People's Party (TPP), another opposition party, eight legislators at large, with two independents who are ideologically aligned with the KMT. The KMT's legislator at large Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜) was elected legislative speaker.

After the legislative election, the KMT worked closely with the TPP to pass several prominent bills the opposition camp favored, including a cut in the central government's proposed general budget, sparking an outcry from the ruling party.

Although the DPP has always claimed the recall votes targeting the opposition lawmakers were initiated by civil groups, Lai at the party's national convention on June 28 urged the DPP to actively support campaigning to oust the KMT lawmakers.

The informal civil groups led by tech guru Robert Tsao (曹興誠) have characterized their efforts to recall 31 KMT lawmakers directly elected to the Legislature as a movement to "protect Taiwan" from Chinese Communist Party encroachment.

After Saturday, recall votes targeting additional seven KMT lawmakers have been scheduled for Aug. 23. The seven legislators were elected in New Taipei, Taichung, and Hsinchu and Nantou counties, including Deputy Legislative Speaker Johnny Chiang (江啓臣).

The KMT and the TPP have called on the public to cast a "no" vote in the recall elections, saying it is necessary to oppose one-party dominance by the DPP and defend the country's democracy and judicial independence.

Meanwhile, suspended Hsinchu Mayor Ann Kao (高虹安), who won the mayoral post in 2022 as the first local government head from the TPP, also faced a recall vote.

Kao, who left the TPP in 2024 amid a corruption scandal, has been suspended from the position since July 2024 after being sentenced by a court to seven years and four months in prison with her civil rights stripped for four years. The case is ongoing.

Under the Public officials Election and Recall Act, a recall vote is successful if the number of voters supporting the recall exceeds the number of voters against the recall in an electoral district, and the number of voters in favor of the recall surpasses 25 percent of eligible voters in the district.

By-elections will be held in three months after the results are officially announced by the Central Election Commission (CEC) with the DPP hoping to reestablish a majority in the Legislative Yuan by winning the by-elections.

For Saturday's votes, the CEC reminded voters heading to the polls to take their national identification cards, personal seals and election notification with them.

Voters are required to turn off their mobile phones and barred from taking cameras into polling stations when they cast their ballots. Anyone who violates these rules faces a fine ranging from NT$30,000 (US$1,020) to NT$300,000.

The CEC said all campaigning for or against the recall votes on Saturday is prohibited.

The recall votes will continue until 4 p.m. and the vote count will follow immediately.