500 foreign reporters to cover Taiwan's presidential election
Taipei - More than 500 foreign reporters have applied to cover Taiwan’s presidential election on March 22, the government Information Office (GIO) said on Tuesday. A press centre has been set up to provide background and other forms of assistance to foreign reporters, GIO Vice Director Yi Jung- tzung said.
There are only two presidential candidates: Ma Ying-jeou of Chinese Nationalist Party (Kuomintang or KMT), Taiwan’s largest opposition party, and Frank Hsieh of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP).
A poll by the TVBS cable television channel on Tuesday showed of the 965 respondents, 53 per cent support Ma while 29 per cent support Hsieh.
Analysts have attributed the low popularity rating of the ruling party candidate to public discontent with the administration of President Chen Shui-bian, which is involved in a string of corruption scandals and is blamed for Taiwan’s economic downturn and strained ties with China.
Chen will have served two four-year terms - the longest tenure of a Taiwan president - when he steps down once the new president is sworn in on May 20.
Tags: news, tvbs
March 22nd, 2008 at 6:05 am
You Americans have the most fucked up way to pick a new President. Party loyalty? Primary elections? WTF?Up here in Canada, if you want to help pick the leader of a political party, you have to be a card-carrying member of that party (which costs money). The election process is a one-day, nation convention affair. Efficient, quick, done!
March 22nd, 2008 at 6:55 am
Let’s examine the facts as we know them. There was a primary. There were people who voted in that primary. There were people who switched parties to vote in that primary and were forced into signing something that is not in the realm of freedom. The vote is supposed to be secret. For the State to come down on people who voted is wrong. The right to vote in secret came before Ohio was a state. If Ohio sanctions one voter they will see a flurry of activity that will stop it. Prosecution of Americans for committing the act of voting is ludicrous.
March 22nd, 2008 at 7:46 am
this primary system is idiotic. we should just have runoff elections. and get rid of the parties.
March 22nd, 2008 at 8:36 am
@ diggduggDOOM. Exactly. When November comes you can vote for any one you want whether or not your Democrat or Republican. But this country can’t take another 4 years of a Republican.
March 22nd, 2008 at 9:27 am
What a waste of time. People can switch parties and vote for who they want whenever they want. The idea that they have to sign loyalty oaths to a certain party is laughably absurd and more than a bit fascist.Many people don’t even HAVE a party loyalty. Saying folks were lying about it is just idiotic. Only they know about it. Trying to unleash the jack booted legions of thought police gestapo to try to prosecute people for being insufficiently loyal to their political party is rank tyranny.
March 22nd, 2008 at 10:17 am
The whole Idea of our voting system is to get the man (or women..ugh) into office you want. Therefore, there is nothing wrong with switching parties to keep the harder opponent out of the general election.
March 22nd, 2008 at 11:08 am
Part of the whole process is this strategy. People may be a little less than scrupulous by doing these things, but they haven’t broken any laws that I know of. I changed affiliations to vote for Ron Paul. I actually wanted him to win, but since he’s not in the running I’ll be voting blue in the election.
March 22nd, 2008 at 11:59 am
In my city there were about 900 Republicans and over 500 of us switched to Democrat to vote. It was such a large number that immediately Cuyahoga County considered it must have been fraud. Well, I was one, and I did not conspire with anyone, did not listen to Rush Limbaugh, did not do it because of anyone else. I just did it because I wanted to vote Democrat. I believe that is my right. Do you want to prosecute me for that? The guys in front of my in the lines, stated that they were doing it “for this election only.” Frankly, if they did, it was within their right to do so. My wife, a life long Democrat, sure did protest when they asked her (in public and out loud) if she was a Democrat or Republican. She said, “What is it any of your business?” When they asked her for her drivers license, she said, “You have no right to ask for that, here is a picture ID from my job, that’s all I have to show!” They still demanded a drivers license. This election showed that Cuyahoga County has no idea what the laws about voting require.
March 22nd, 2008 at 12:49 pm
The Limbaugh cross-over voters wrote comments on their affidavits like “Only for one day!”. How dumb. They deserve to be charged. Ohio will also indict Limbaugh on voter fraud to stop any more election tampering in the future.
March 22nd, 2008 at 1:40 pm
Ohio can’t do this… They’d have to take it to court and no court in the country would do more then laugh this right out of the room. Did the republicans do a bad thing here? Yes… it was pretty sleazy… but it’s also a legal and constitutionally protected action.Remember, political parties are not officially part of the US government. They are a defacto part but not an official part. As such individual voters have more official rights and protections then the parties themselves. The parties match this with influence, money, and organization… which are things most voters can’t counter. But in any serious court of law… it is the law that will trump the money.