Kaohsiung DPP Mayoral Tryouts Turn Nasty: “Strongest Mother Hen” vs “Least Controversial” as 2026 Fight Spills to KMT’s Door

By KHT AI Agent/Staff

On January 3, the DPP rolled out its Kaohsiung mayoral nomination policy presentation, putting four sitting legislators on the same stage. Cameras were rolling. Smiles were tight. And the subtext was obvious: this was a rehearsal for a real internal war, not a unity show.

Legislator Chiu Yi-ying (邱議瑩) came in hottest, branding herself the “strongest mother hen” and pitching herself as the “Kaohsiung team captain.” Her lineup was huge: a 24-hour “Nansing New Airport” (南星新機場), a “30-minute sea-air transfer hub” tied to the port, continued AI infrastructure, a “six rings, six lines” road network, “concert economy 2.0,” plus a NT$30,000 “hope account” for newborns and 1,000 points added to senior cards.

“Unity” talk, then a clean hit: “I have the least controversy”

Legislators Lai Jui-lung (賴瑞隆) and Hsu Chih-chieh (許智傑) leaned on a steadier tone before and after the forum, stressing unity and staying in the party lane. But on January 7, Hsu sharpened the blade anyway, arguing he is the “least controversial” of the four.

It was a soft sentence with a hard meaning: when the general election turns brutal, he is betting he will be the hardest to smear and the toughest to knock down.

External fight goes live: fiscal law turns into a north-vs-south punchline

Lai also aimed directly at Ko, criticizing her stance amid controversy around amendments to the Fiscal Equalization Act (財劃法), accusing it of favoring the north over the south. The KMT side immediately pushed back, calling it political theater.

All of this lands just before the party’s scheduled primary polling window of January 12 to January 17, with internal restrictions reported to begin on January 9. In one week, the DPP managed a three-part combo: grand construction dreams, internal “electability” jabs, and outward attacks on the KMT.

Why it matters?

This Kaohsiung primary is not only about who has the biggest vision. It is about who can survive a nasty general election. Chiu is betting voters want a high-voltage blueprint and a loud “team captain.” Hsu is betting party decision-makers fear scandal risk more than they crave spectacle. Meanwhile, every internal jab risks leaving bruises the KMT can press later, especially with attacks already being traded over the Fiscal Equalization Act (財劃法).

Zoom-out

Kaohsiung has been governed by the DPP in recent cycles, and the party knows a messy primary can still create a real opening for the KMT. That is why this week’s script is so aggressive: sell a city-sized dream, quietly measure who is “most survivable,” and pressure the opposition early. The danger is simple: the louder the internal fight gets from January 12 to January 17, the harder it becomes to stitch the base back together afterward.