Eight younger Kuomintang city councillors in Taichung kicked off Taiwan's local election season with a costume-themed joint registration, a low-stakes but telling sign of how the party is pitching itself to grassroots voters.

• The first day of registration for Taiwan's nine-in-one local elections opened, and the eight councillors signed up as a bloc.
• Each dressed as an ordinary worker — doctor, cook, cleaner, farmer, market vendor, night-market stallholder, laborer — to signal they speak for regular people.
• The group, calling itself a "new politics alliance," is running on its record rather than slogans, arguing voters should judge what they actually delivered this term.
• Banding together lets the younger wing show strength in numbers and claim credit for tougher oversight of Taichung's city government.

Outlook: Registration continues across Taiwan in the run-up to the local vote, with the KMT leaning on local service records to hold its ground in Taichung.