The 68th anniversary commemoration of the Aug. 23 Artillery Battle in Taichung turned into a Kuomintang election rally — good news for the blue camp's morale, and pressure on the governing Democratic Progressive Party.

• At the commemoration, Taichung Mayor Lu Shiu-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 said outright that President Lai Ching-te "is pursuing Taiwan independence," warning that this would destroy the Republic of China and bring war, and stressing that supporters of Taiwan independence must not be allowed to take Taichung.
• She called for "defending the Republic of China and defending peace," framing the 2026 and 2028 elections as must-win.
• The DPP caucus in the Taichung City Council criticized Lu, saying her remarks sounded like the Taiwan Affairs Office and that she had forgotten that Aug. 23 is, at its origin, a day commemorating resistance to Chinese aggression.
• Lai has visited Taichung four times in one month to campaign, seen as a sign that the blue-green contest in the city has begun early.

Outlook: Taichung will be a main battleground in the 2026 local elections, and the blue-green argument over "Taiwan independence" versus "the Republic of China" will only grow more heated.