Alexa
  • Directory of Taiwan

Taiwan polling expert praises DPP chair for upholding party values

Lai made generous offer, while DPP should be looking at existing polling rules: Ying-lung You

  935
DPP Chairman Cho Jung-tai (left) and TPOF Chairman Ying-lung You when they were both running for DPP leader last year.

DPP Chairman Cho Jung-tai (left) and TPOF Chairman Ying-lung You when they were both running for DPP leader last year. (CNA photo)

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Chairman Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) has upheld party values by coming out strongly in favor of its existing system to select a presidential nominee, Taiwanese Public Opinion Foundation (TPOF) Chairman Ying-lung You (游盈隆) said Thursday (May 23).

After two hours of heated discussions Wednesday afternoon, the DPP’s Central Executive Committee (CEC) failed to reach agreement on the details of the opinion polls needed to find a candidate for the January 11, 2020 presidential election.

Announcing a suspension of the discussions until next week, Cho made a forceful plea in favor of keeping existing regulations. He said not doing so would amount to treating the original March 13 decision to adopt the rules as mere “child’s play.”

On his Facebook page, You praised the chairman’s remarks as an important landmark in DPP history.

“Because of Cho Jung-tai’s insistence, this party has maintained its basic standing, respect and credibility,” You wrote.

Opponents and supporters all needed to pay attention to the chairman’s words, the United Daily News quoted You as saying, while he also lashed out at the backers of President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) on the CEC.

The academic also praised Tsai’s challenger for the nomination, ex-Premier William Lai (賴清德), for his proposal to unlock the stalemate. At a news conference at party headquarters after Wednesday’s CEC meeting, Lai proposed that if he defeated Han in the DPP polls and Han beat Tsai, the party leadership should nominate him as its candidate. However, if he failed to beat Han, or if President Tsai won more support than Han in the DPP poll, then he would fully support Tsai to run for a second and final term.

The TPOF chairman explained that Lai was being generous, because even if he led Han more than Tsai did in the eventual polls, he was still prepared to give up his challenge and support the president for re-election.

In the end, both sides and the DPP leadership only needed to take a close and rational look at the existing party rules for holding opinion polls and they would be able to solve the problem, You concluded.

The Tsai camp has been favoring smartphone surveys and polls in June, after the June 7 Dragon Boat holiday, while Lai wants to stick to the existing landline polls and see them conducted as soon as possible.