An official ceremony in Taichung marking the Aug. 23 Artillery Battle turned into a campaign stage for the Kuomintang — a boost for the blue camp and an embarrassment for the governing Democratic Progressive Party.

• At the commemoration, Mayor Lu Shiow-yen symbolically passed the baton to Chiang Chi-chen, the KMT's candidate for Taichung mayor, as chants of "dongsuan" ("get elected") rang out.
• Lu named President Lai Ching-te directly, accusing him of "pushing Taiwan independence," saying this would destroy the Republic of China and invite war, and declaring that advocates of Taiwan independence must not be allowed to take Taichung.
• She put forward the slogan "Protect the Republic of China — every vote counts in 2028," tying the 2026 local elections to the 2028 presidential race together.
• The DPP caucus in the Taichung City Council hit back, saying Lu's remarks sounded like the Taiwan Affairs Office and asking whether she had forgotten that Aug. 23 was about resisting Chinese aggression in the first place.
• Several KMT legislators, city councillors and candidates attended, giving the event the character of a party mobilisation rather than a memorial ceremony.

Outlook: The blue camp has already cast Taichung as a key battleground for 2026, and the two parties' clashes over "Republic of China vs. Taiwan independence" will only intensify.