Lo Chih-chiang launches KMT chair bid, vows to back Lu Shiow-yen in 2028

Taipei, Aug. 26 (CNA) Kuomintang (KMT) lawmaker Lo Chih-chiang (羅智強) declared Tuesday he will run for chairman of Taiwan's largest opposition party, pledging to draft Taichung Mayor Lu Shiow-yen (盧秀燕) as the KMT's presidential candidate in 2028.

Lo promised to nominate Lu within three months of the 2026 local government elections and then step down, supporting her to take over as chair.

According to Lo, who represents Taipei's sixth electoral district in the Legislative Yuan, uniting the party under a single candidate is the only path to victory in 2028.

He said the KMT lost in 2016, 2020 and 2024 because multiple contenders weakened the party and benefited the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP).

Lo said he had proposed a "grand alliance for party rotation" before last year's presidential election, but it was not adopted, leading to division in the opposition and enabling Lai Ching-te (賴清德) of the DPP to win with 40 percent of the vote.

He vowed that such division must not be repeated in the 2026 local government and 2028 presidential elections.

He said he would again establish a "grand alliance for party rotation" and create a system for regular consultations with the leader of the Taiwan People's Party (TPP).

Lo said cooperation between the KMT and TPP would include three areas: deepening parliamentary cooperation, election cooperation that respected the TPP's independence, and "justice cooperation."

As part of that "justice cooperation," Lo said he would encourage the creation of a "political persecution investigation committee," adding that seeking redress for Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) and Huang Lu Chin-ju (黃呂錦茹) should be a key KMT policy pledge.

Ko, a former mayor of Taipei and the founder of the TPP, is currently on trial for corruption and bribery charges, while Huang, who led the KMT's Taipei branch office, is facing criminal charges relating to alleged forged signatures on recall vote petitions.