Taipei Times
Date: May 11, 2020
By: Chen Yun / Staff reporter

Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) members are calling for KMT Chairman Johnny Chiang (江啟臣) to “lead the charge” by joining a possible mayoral by-election amid a bleak outlook for Kaohsiung Mayor Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜) in a recall vote scheduled for June 6, party sources said on Saturday.

If Han of the KMT is recalled — which would trigger a mayoral by-election — it would deal a serious blow to the party, in which case a strong mayoral candidate would be needed to shield the party from further damage, a KMT legislator said on condition of anonymity.

If the party’s candidate in a mayoral by-election cannot win 890,000 votes as Han did in the 2018 local elections at the height of his popularity, they would need to win at least the 600,000 votes that Han garnered in the city when he ran as the KMT’s presidential candidate in the Jan. 11 elections, the lawmaker said.

If Chiang throws his hat in the ring, he would be helping the party through its darkest hour a second time, which would resolve the Han issue and boost morale within the party, as well as his own popularity, they said.    [FULL  STORY]