The nine-in-one general election is approaching, and the rift between the two parties in Hsinchu County has deepened after the Blue-White alliance broke up. People's Party Chairman Huang Guochang even claimed that the Kuomintang candidate for Hsinchu County Governor Xu Xinying has "Game Over." Japanese political scholar Yoshiyuki Ogasawara said today that the Xu Xinying camp cannot be optimistic this time, but Hsinchu County is known as the "iron ticket area" of the Kuomintang and has a solid foundation behind it. Therefore, Xu Xinying may still win in the final stage.
Ogasawara Yoshiyuki, honorary chair professor of Tsinghua University, posted on Facebook today that he and Mr. Hanano, director of the Taipei branch of the Nihon Keizai Shimbun, came to Zhubei City yesterday and observed the situation in Zhubei on the spot. Although the Japanese media mostly ignored the Hsinchu county magistrate election, it played an important role in this year's nine-in-one election. The local politics of Taiwan's cutting-edge semiconductor industry is where "global" and "local" factors intersect, so this election deserves special attention.
Ogasawara Yoshiyuki pointed out that Hsinchu County has always been more blue than green. However, in recent years, the booming development of the semiconductor industry in Hsinchu Science Park has attracted a large number of new residents with high education and high income to move in, changing the local political landscape. DPP candidate Zheng Chaofang was elected mayor of Zhubei four years ago. By integrating aesthetics into the construction of municipal facilities and public spaces despite a limited public office budget, he received good reviews from Zhubei citizens and ran for county magistrate based on his achievements.
On the other hand, Kuomintang candidate Xu Xinying is a legislator in the first district of Hsinchu County. Her election strategy is to consolidate the Kuomintang's basic base while wooing middle voters related to Zhuke. Her main political opinion is to promote AI county administration. Despite various situations during the campaign, in short, the focus of the Hsinchu County Magistrate election has gradually focused on how voters evaluate Zheng Chaofang's Zhubei governance experience.
Ogasawara Yoshiyuki emphasized that Zhubei City has the largest population among the towns and cities in Hsinchu County. Zhubei citizens are highly satisfied with Zheng Chaofang's four-year political performance, which is a favorable factor for candidate Zheng. In addition, if the residents of Zhudong Town, Hukou Township, and Xinfeng Township, the neighboring towns with the largest population after Zhubei, also believe that "Zhubei is developing very well," then some of the KMT's votes may flow to Zheng Chaofang.
On the other hand, the problem for Xu Xinying’s camp is that the KMT’s primary election was extremely fierce and there are still cracks. In addition, Blue and White have already failed in the Zhubei mayoral election. As the two parties each introduced candidates, eventually forming a three-legged governor including candidates from the Democratic Progressive Party, many People's Party supporters in Hsinchu County were dissatisfied with the KMT's attitude, and the direction of the votes was unclear. This is also a factor that makes Xu Xinying's camp not optimistic. However, Hsinchu County is known as the "iron ticket area" of the Kuomintang and has a solid foundation behind it, so Xu Xinying may still win in the final stage.
