Taiwan parties push alliance talks in bid to beat ruling DPP

TAIPEI - Taiwan People’s Party leader Ko Wen-je, running second in most polls ahead of

January’s presidential election

, said there have been multiple meetings with the Kuomintang on a potential alliance against the frontrunner, the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP).

“We know that time is running out,” Mr Ko said at a briefing in Taipei. “Our staff have been communicating with each other frequently, and we hope to reach a conclusion as soon as possible.”

The governing DPP’s candidate, Vice-President William Lai Ching-te, has led local polls for months.

That has prompted his rivals to openly discuss an alliance, which could be a game-changer for the election – but which must be agreed by a late November deadline for registering candidates. 

Any tie-up would be welcomed by China, which is concerned at the pro-independence stance of the DPP.

Both Mr Ko’s party and the third-placed Kuomintang (KMT) which ruled the island for decades, favour closer ties with Beijing.

The Kuomintang’s candidate Hou Yu-ih, the mayor of New Taipei City, earlier this week urged Mr Ko to agree to enter the race together on a joint ticket, as president and vice-president.

Mr Hou also indicated that he would be open to being Mr Ko’s deputy, depending on how talks proceed. 

Mr Ko, who had previously pushed for alliance talks to end in October, said the “real deadline” for a conclusion is November and that “we are used to fighting till the last minute”. 

Still, he warned that things may get more difficult the longer talks drag on. 

China’s concerns that the DPP will retain the presidency when incumbent Ms Tsai Ing-wen steps down were underscored earlier this week when the Communist Party’s Global Times newspaper condemned

the candidacy of Mr Terry Gou

, a former KMT supporter whose independent bid for the presidency is seen as weakening opposition chances.

Chinese regulators also announced

a probe of the tech giant Mr Gou founded

, which has since shed billions in market value. 

A TVBS poll released earlier this week showed some 33 per cent of Taiwanese voters polled support the DPP’s Mr Lai, against 24 per cent for Mr Ko and 22 per cent for the KMT’s Mr Hou.

A coalition of different political parties would be rare for Taiwan.

In 2004 the People First Party joined forces with the KMT in a bid to dethrone the DPP president. The alliance lost by 0.2 per cent – the closest presidential vote in the island’s history. 

The KMT and Taiwan People’s Party have negotiated on a possible coalition previously, though they have disagreed on how to determine who runs as president and deputy.

The KMT has proposed a procedure, but Mr Ko and his party have rejected the idea. BLOOMBERG