Cooperation between Taiwan's Kuomintang and Taiwan People's Party is breaking down, bad news for an opposition camp hoping to defeat the governing Democratic Progressive Party.

• Blue-white coordination talks over the Zhubei mayoral race have formally collapsed, with each party's candidate registering separately.
• The TPP's Changhua branch has confirmed it is considering fielding its own deputy director, Lai Ying-chu, for Changhua County magistrate, stressing that he is a local entrepreneur with substantial resources.
• The KMT's nomination of Wei Ping-cheng in Changhua has triggered a backlash within the party, with KMT legislator Hsieh I-feng criticising him as a "parachuted candidate"; Hsieh I-feng, Ko Cheng-fang and others could still enter the race.
• Ko Wen-je warned that the breakdown in Zhubei would spread to Yilan and New Taipei, leaving the KMT at a considerable disadvantage in 2026.
• The New Taipei mayoral race is also tightening: Li Si-chuan's lead over Su Chiao-hui has narrowed from six percentage points to under three.

Outlook: Candidate registration opens on 31 August, and if the blue and white camps cannot reach agreement in the final few days, several counties and cities will see three-way contests — to the benefit of the green camp.