By KHT Staff
KAOHSIUNG — Kuomintang mayoral candidate Ko Chih-en (柯志恩) and Democratic Progressive Party candidate Lai Jui-lung (賴瑞隆) appeared together at an agricultural festival in Cishan District (旗山區) on Saturday, Sept. 26, but exchanged little more than a brief greeting, according to the China Times.
The encounter came as campaigning intensified ahead of Taiwan’s local elections on Saturday, Nov. 28, the date announced by the Central Election Commission.
Ko and Lai attended the 2026 Summer Fresh Market at Qishan Sports Stadium, where Mayor Chen Chi-mai (陳其邁) also appeared. A Kaohsiung City Government statement said the Sept. 26-27 event featured local farm products, crafts, family activities and exchanges with businesses from Okinawa, Japan.
Lai toured the market with Chen, while Ko first canvassed at Cishan’s public market before joining the festival. Campaign workers distributed hand fans and tissue packets as supporters called out for their preferred candidate, the China Times reported.
Although Ko and Lai were seated next to each other during the event, they showed little visible interaction. Knews reported that each used remarks from the stage to present a different governing message, with Ko emphasizing administration across party lines and Lai promising continuity with Chen’s policies.
Both candidates also previewed larger campaign events. United Daily News reported that Ko said Legislative Speaker Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜) could appear at rallies in Cishan and Gangshan District (岡山區), while Lai planned a major Cishan rally with prominent guests in early October.
Ko said her events would not simply recreate the “three mountains” format associated with Han’s successful 2018 mayoral campaign. The phrase refers to large rallies held in districts with the word “mountain/山” in their name: Fongshan District (鳳山區), Cishan and Gangshan, according to a Central News Agency report from that campaign.
The candidates also differed over the Dalinpu (大林蒲) relocation project in Siaogang District (小港區). At a Mid-Autumn Festival barbecue on Friday, Sept. 25, Lai compared the project’s timing to cooking meat, saying that once it was ready, it should not be left waiting. He pledged to continue Chen’s plans and accelerate the relocation.
Ko responded that the “meat” was not yet ready and called for another review of compensation standards for buildings and other property improvements. She said compensation must be sufficient to protect residents after they move, the China Times reported.
The relocation plan remains under implementation. Kaohsiung’s Urban Development Bureau said in August that roads at the resettlement site were under construction and that land-allocation drawings and compensation payments were expected to begin in 2027, according to the Central News Agency.
