New Taipei You can’t miss it in Taiwan's "Nine in One election" /The 91th "Cross-Strait Talk" (Gener
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At 7:30 p.m. on October 28, the 91th "Cross-Strait Talk" (General 167 st) , hosted by China Cross-Strait Academy (Hong Kong) and Xiamen Qidataixiang Entrepreneurship Service Co., Ltd.) was successfully held at the Tencent Conference with the theme of "New Taipei: You cant miss it in Taiwan's "Nine in One election".

The Nine in one election in 2022 has entered the final sprint of the last month, and all political parties and candidates are making every effort. At this moment, all kinds of "cheap move", "throw mud at the opponent", "online campaign" and "offline campaign" election attacks and defenses continue to emerge. However, only a few of the 22 counties and cities in Taiwan this time continue to attract the attention of all parties. And they are also the focus of attacks and defenses of political parties, because these counties and cities may waste all the previous efforts if they are a little careless, it even affects the momentum of the 2024 election. Therefore, the "nine in one" hot topic of counties and cities will be discussed in depth on the current hot situation of each county and city, about the tight situation, key issues affecting the final situation selection, and etc. In this "Cross-Strait Talk" forum, the China Cross-Strait Academy (Hong Kong) specially invited experts and scholars from both sides of the Strait, including Chen Zhengfeng, member of the Central Committee of the Chinese Kuomintang, former deputy to the National Assembly, Tung Chunleung, New Taipei City Council candidate for Sanchong and LuJou Chau Area and deputy spokesperson of the New Party, Lam Puichen, New Taipei City MP candidate for Flat Land Aboriginal Constituency and deputy spokesperson for the New Party, Luo Ying, member of the New Residents Committee of the Chinese Kuomintang and representative of the Chinese Kuomintang, to exchange views on the topic of "New Taipei: You cant miss it in Taiwan's "Nine in One election", focusing on the current election situation of New Taipei City, whether New Taipei Mayor Hou Youyi is sure of success, and the key issues that affect the final decision of the voters in Taipei City. Luo Dingjun, Secretary General of the China Cross-Strait Academy (Hong Kong), served as the host of the meeting.

According to Chen Zhengfeng, New Taipei City is Taiwan's most populous county and has always been the largest voting block in Taiwan elections. It has a lot of migrant population, spillover effect is obvious. At present, the election situation in New Taipei City is relatively stable. Hou Youyi, the nominee of the Kuomintang Party, leads the polls by a large margin, and the road to re-election is more optimistic. With his diligent and down-to-earth governing style and less ideological color, Hou Youyi is popular with blue and moderate voters, and he has a high degree of political satisfaction. By contrast, Lam Kalung, the DPP candidate, is hardly a threat. In general, whether the pan-blue camp can secure more than half of the seats will depend on the defense of the speaker. As a result, the mayoral race in New Taipei City is relatively stable, but the race for council members is expected to be fierce.

Tung Chunleung said that he is the district councilor candidate of Sanchong Area and LuJou Arwa of New Taipei City, which have a long history of voting green. For the Democratic Progressive Party, it is also an area that must be seized this time. In this year, the local elections in Taiwan were unusually cold. For the KMT, the Han Wave, which was able to drive the party's unity, is missing. And after four years of intra-party squabbling, inter-party rivalries and local splintering, although Hou Youyi is expected to win a second term due to her high popularity and satisfaction with her administration, there is a possibility of an unexpected outcome due to the DPP's election maneuvers at all costs.

Lam Puichen pointed out that the KMT incumbent Mayor Hou Youyi has a very high reputation in New Taipei City. The DPP's candidate, Lam Kalung, who had been mayor of Taichung and lost his bid for a second term, was persuaded by Tsai Ingwen to run for mayor of New Taipei. He has neither local service advantage nor the local roots. So it is difficult for him to shake Hou Youyi's advantages. In addition, many of the DPP's policies have failed, and it has been frequently exposed to scandals, which may have a different effect on Lam's election. As a candidate of the New Taipei City Flat Aboriginal Constituency, he feels that the election of New Taipei City Council members is more competitive. In some ways, the Nine in One election could be a bellwether for the 2024 election.

Luo Ying pointed out that at present, the new residents have become the fourth largest ethnic group in Taiwan society. The new residents in New Taipei City have spouses from both the mainland and Southeast Asia, and they have the right to vote officially after obtaining the Taiwan identity card. The number of the new residents in Taiwan is about the same as that of the natives, which has become one of the key factors influencing the vote. With the continuous immigration of new residents in Southeast Asia, the influence on various fields in Taiwan is gradually emerging. And this situation also aroused the attention of the DPP. Resources are also skewed towards Southeast Asian spouses, while spouses from the mainland are relatively more pro-KMT.

In addition to the wonderful speeches delivered by the guests, the online audience also actively participated in the interactive Q&A on the topic. Questions from whether the new residents would support the pro-blue camp, whether the DPP's brainwashing of the new residents with its ruling resources would be supervised and condemned by the society, whether the continued move toward the center by politicians of all parties mean that the two parties are further converging on economic, foreign affairs and Cross-Strait policies and values, how can the county councilors make efforts to promote the friendly exchanges between the people of both sides of the Taiwan Straits, and policies on the aging of New Taipei City and fewer children and long-term, etc. All the guests at the meeting answered these questions, and the discussion was heated, highlighting the great concern of young people and scholars on Cross-Strait on the issue of New Taipei: you cant miss it in Taiwans Nine in One election’”.

Chen Zhengfeng said that New Taipei City, as the city with the largest population, has a huge spillover effect, which is related to the linkage of "North 4 cities". The local elections are about 2024 and the future of Cross-Strait relations. If Hou has a chance to run for the leadership of Taiwan in 2024, it is worth planning ahead for the problem that whether there are other KMT politicians capable of taking his place to continue to govern New Taipei City and maintaining the current advantages of New Taipei City for the KMT. Tung Chunleung pointed out that ordinary citizens have a lot of dissatisfaction with the DPP's shameless behavior. Lam Kalung, who was parachuted to New Taipei after his defeat in Taichung, had neither served the local community nor was he popular at the grassroots level. As a result, local voters will be more likely to choose a do-gooder than a showman in this year's election. Hou is almost certain to be re-elected, but there could be a big reshuffle in parliament. Lam Puichen said the impact of the pandemic has been traumatic for many families. They are overburdened by a lack of government agencies and caregivers. Compared with the Chinese mainland, Taiwan's long-term planning system has developed slowly and there are too many problems in policy planning in urgent need of improvement. Luo Ying argued that resource policy has been continuously tilted towards the new residents of Southeast Asia since Tsai Ingwen took office. The new residents in Southeast Asia have a real impact on Taiwan's society, culture, politics, the relationship between Taiwan and Southeast Asia and cross-Straits relations, and are conducive to the Southeast Asia policy layout of Taiwan authorities. Therefore, the DPP authorities will go to great lengths to include the new residents among their ranks.

At the end of the meeting, Chen Zhengfeng believed that most of the candidates in Taiwan tended to be manipulated by votes, however, how to improve the people's livelihood should be the direction of the candidates' efforts in the face of the increasingly serious aging population and the decreasing fertility rate in Taiwan. Tung Chunleung said that New Taipei City, as a modern city, is far behind mainland cities in terms of urban construction and urban renewal. Only by supporting anti-war and peace and focusing on local services and construction, can local prosperity be continuously promoted. Lam Puichen argued that how to improve the education and medical environment for Taiwanese Aborigines, promote their culture widely, and let more young Taiwanese Aborigines have a bright future is the driving force for his participation in politics. He hopes to change the current situation and build their hometown better and better together in the future. Luo Ying pointed out that the influence of the new residents could not be ignored, and the KMT should arrange and guide them well in advance, so as to avoid them to make wrong judgments and choices being used by the DPP authorities.

Through a brief 2-hour online exchange, more than 200 people from both sides of the strait gathered to discuss the topic of “New Taipei: You cant miss it in Taiwan's "Nine in One election”, to promote cross-strait exchanges with practical actions, and make contributions to maintaining cross-strait peace and development. As the cross-strait exchange activity synchronized with “Cross-Strait Talk” and “Smart Youth Integration in the Four Places”, the Cross-Strait Youth Perspective Forum, which launched by China Cross-Strait Academy (Hong Kong), is mainly characterized by gathering authoritative scholars and media worker from Cross-Strait and four places. They will listen to the voice of the Strait, pay attention to the hot spots on both sides of Taiwan Strait, take a global vision, and make a new voice based on both sides of the strait and facing the world.