TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The KMT party leadership is leaning toward voting down all seven of President Lai Ching-te’s (賴清德) nominees for the Judicial Yuan justices, though some of the party’s lawmakers are open to approving a select few.
Lai submitted the nominations in March and legislative reviews are scheduled for July 9, 10, and 14, per UP Media. A final vote is set for July 25, just one day before the first wave of recall elections.
The nominees, led by Presidential Secretary-General Pan Men-an (潘孟安), visited Legislative Speaker Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜) and the KMT legislative caucus on June 27 to lobby for support. However, with many KMT lawmakers focused on their recall campaigns, the party has struggled to coordinate a review strategy.
A KMT insider told UP Media the DPP has continued to polarize the political landscape since the recall effort began in February, and the KMT sees little reason to cooperate. The insider claimed the DPP intentionally scheduled the vote just before the recall elections to energize its base if the KMT blocks the confirmations.
Still, the insider also noted that voting against all seven nominees, especially those perceived by KMT supporters as opposing the death penalty, could boost turnout for the KMT in the recall elections.
Despite the leadership's hardline stance, several KMT lawmakers view four nominees as qualified: High Prosecutors Office Chief Prosecutors Lin Li-ying (林麗瑩) and Tsai Chiu-ming (蔡秋明), along with Supreme Court Judges Su Su-o (蘇素娥) and Cheng Chun-hui (鄭純惠). Some lawmakers said they would support them if their constitutional interpretations align with KMT principles.
Another KMT legislator told UP Media the party is not concerned about how the confirmation outcome might affect the recall vote.
At Thursday’s hearing, attention focused on Tsai, nominated to serve as president of the Judicial Yuan, per Liberty Times. Legal scholars raised concerns about potential conflicts of interest, given his background as a prosecutor.
Retired Tunghai University professor Lin Teng-yau (林騰鷂) cautioned against placing a prosecutor at the head of Taiwan’s judicial system, per Newtalk. Lawyer Lai Pin-hsiang (賴秉詳) acknowledged that Tsai is legally eligible but warned of potential conflicts if the Judicial Yuan’s legal interpretations diverge from those of the Justice Ministry.
The Judicial Reform Foundation issued a statement Tuesday criticizing Tsai for failing to respond to public questions, particularly regarding his reform agenda and concerns raised by Lai Pin-hsiang, per Newtalk.
