Hualien County election features three-way contest among KMT-linked candidates

The Hualien County magistrate election has entered a rare three-way competition involving candidates with overlapping political backgrounds. Yu Shu-chen, the official Kuomintang (KMT) nominee, is campaigning to maximize the blue camp's vote share. She faces two independent challengers, Wei Chia-hsien and Chang Chun, both of whom have significant ties to the KMT.

Wei Chia-hsien, a former two-term Hualien Mayor, is leveraging his family's deep local roots and proposing infrastructure projects such as the extension of the high-speed rail to Hualien. Chang Chun, a former KMT Hualien County Party Branch Director, is running as an independent with a platform focused on cross-party cooperation. Vice President Hsiao Mei-ching has expressed support for cross-party collaboration in the region.

In the local municipal race, Wei Chia-yen, the current Hualien Mayor and brother of Wei Chia-hsien, recently held a campaign headquarters launch event. He emphasized his vision for economic revitalization and stable living, seeking to coordinate future municipal and county-level governance with his brother's potential administration.