KMT Names Chang as Taoyuan Mayoral Candidate 藍營提名張善政選桃園 呂玉玲.羅智強不滿

The Kuomintang nominated former Premier Simon Chang as its candidate for Taoyuan City mayor on May 18. Other potential candidates expressed their dissatisfaction with the nomination process, while Taoyuan City Council Speaker Chiu Yi-sheng left the KMT's LINE group as a protest.

A Taoyuan City Council candidate presents a TVBS poll showing that residents support the candidacy of former Taipei City Councilor Lo Chih-chiang for Taoyuan City mayor, and urged the Kuomintang to conduct another poll.

Mao Chia-ching, Taoyuan City Council Candidate: “With regards to opinion polls and Lo Chih-chiang, it's true that he's the strongest candidate within the party. This holds true when he's pitted against Chen Shih-chung and Cheng Yun-peng. Another opinion poll should be held with Simon Chang and even Eric Chu added to the mix.”

The KMT made a surprise announcement on May 18 that it has nominated former Premier Simon Chang as its candidate for Taoyuan City mayor. Party members that were interested in running were shocked and upset. Lo, who was actively pursuing the nomination, posted about his astonishment and mixed feelings on Facebook. KMT Legislator Lu Yu-ling criticized the party's central committee and said she cannot accept the decision.

Lu Yu-ling, Legislator (KMT): “The KMT is an open-and-shut party, but it deliberately engaged in black box operations and skipped over mechanisms to nominate a special municipality mayoral candidate. This is really messed up, and I can't accept it.”

The decision to nominate Chang is putting party solidarity to the test. Taoyuan City Council Speaker Chiu Yi-sheng has already left the KMT's LINE group, and there are reports he resigned as the chairperson of the party's local headquarters. Legislator Lu Ming-che, who was also interested in running, and Wan Mei-ling, who was considered to be another candidate, both urged the central committee to start making amends.

Lu Ming-che, Legislator (KMT): “The end of the nomination process is the start of integration. If we continue talking about this, the scars may deepen. We would like to see a warm integration process.”

Wan Mei-ling, Legislator (KMT): “I don't even want to think about our chances of winning the year-end elections if there is no solidarity. I think the top priority of the central committee now is to identify the optimal time for making amends.”

There are reports that KMT Chairperson Eric Chu consulted with Han Kuo-yu before making the announcement. However, Han posted on Facebook on May 18 that he hopes the central committee can communicate and coordinate fully when nominating, as well as consider the feelings and interests of members to achieve solidarity.

桃園市議員參選人公布TVBS民調力挺前台北市議員羅智強，期盼國民黨重做民調審慎評估。

桃園市中壢區市議員參選人毛嘉慶表示：「關於民調以及羅智強確實已經在國民黨黨內互比最強，然後對比也輾壓陳時中與鄭運鵬把張善政再擺入這4個人，甚至如果最強的桃園人朱立倫也有興趣，我們也把他擺進民調來。」

國民黨18日突襲式提名前行政院長張善政參選桃園市，引爆黨內有意參選人的震驚與不滿，尤其積極投入參選的羅智強在臉書透露感到驚訝、錯愕、五味雜陳，國民黨立委呂玉玲痛批黨中央，無法接受。

國民黨立委呂玉玲表示：「國民黨是一個大開大闔的政黨卻刻意地隱瞞，跳過機制來提名一個直轄市市長參選人，真的是亂無章法，所以我沒有辦法接受。」

徵召張善政也引爆地方團結危機，桃園市議長邱奕勝直接退出國民黨群組，傳出已請辭黨部主委。日前曾表達願意承擔的立委魯明哲和被外界點名參選的萬美玲都呼籲黨中央盡速弭平傷痕。

國民黨立委魯明哲表示：「提名的結束就是整合的開始，我們再多說什麼也有可能變成加深傷痕的一份子，希望有一個比較溫暖的整合過程。」國民黨立委萬美玲也表示，「這一仗如果沒有團結這件事情，我想年底選戰的勝選率是想都不用想，所以怎麼樣盡速地掌握最佳的時間去弭平傷痕與紛擾，我想這是中央現在當務之急要做的。」

外傳國民黨主席朱立倫在徵詢過程中曾詢問過韓國瑜的想法，不過韓國瑜18日晚間在臉書表示，希望黨中央提名時能充分溝通、協調，顧及黨內同志的感受與權益，大家才能齊心團結。