Cooperation between the Taiwan People's Party and the Kuomintang in Zhubei City, Hsinchu County, has run into a new complication, as former legislator Li Chen-hsiu abruptly announced she is entering the mayoral race.

• Li announced her candidacy for Zhubei mayor today, stressing that the decision was not made on the spur of the moment, and set out five main policy directions.
• Whether her candidacy is valid still depends on how the Central Election Commission rules.
• The TPP has already nominated Chiu Chen-yuan by conscription; he said he would continue to put forward a pragmatic vision for the city and would work hard to win residents' support.
• The KMT, for its part, selected sitting councillor Wu Hsu-chih through a primary, and both men insist they will stay in the race until the end.
• The national leaderships of the two parties have yet to agree on a final joint candidate.

Outlook: Pressure for KMT-TPP integration is mounting, and if a single candidate is not settled on soon, the Zhubei race could end up with the vote split among multiple contenders.