CHOICE:Tsai Ing-wen has said the selection process is ongoing and that the DPP’s vice presidential candidate would likely be announced before the party congress
By Chris Wang / Staff Reporter
Former premier Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) yesterday said he would not be the running mate of Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Chairperson Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文), who is running for president in the January election.
Despite his repeated comments that he had no intention of running as vice president after losing to Tsai in the DPP presidential primary in April, Su’s name has continued to be raised as a possible vice presidential candidate.
“I have said a number of times that I have no intention of running for vice president. I will do what I said,” Su, who serves as Tsai’s campaign chairman, said before chairing a campaign meeting organized by the DPP’s Taipei headquarters.
Su’s comment took him out of a selected pool of possible candidates for vice president, which is believed to include former minister of finance Lin Chuan (林全), central bank Governor Perng Fai-nan (彭淮南), former deputy premier Lin Hsin-yi (林信義), former DPP chairman Lin I-hsiung (林義雄) and DPP Secretary-General Su Jia-chyuan (蘇嘉全).
OUT OF THE RING
Lin Chuan also said last week that he would not be a candidate.
Tsai told reporters the selection process was ongoing and that the candidate would likely be announced before the party congress on Sunday.
UNCONDITIONAL SUPPORT
Almost all DPP heavyweights said they unconditionally supported Tsai’s selection.
“It’s the right of the presidential candidate. I will support whoever she picks,” former premier Frank Hsieh (謝長廷) said.
“I want to know who the candidate is, but I really don’t,” former premier Yu Shyi-kun said, adding that the only expectation he has for the candidate is that he or she can win more votes for the party in the election.
The announcement need not be made before or after the party congress, Yu said, because that could take away the real focus of the congress.
“It would not hurt to make the announcement in September or October,” he said.