Taiwan's 2026 local election season formally opened as candidate registration began, with a New Taipei council hopeful racing to be first in line — a small but telling sign of how tight local races have become.

• Registration for Taiwan's 2026 local elections opened, kicking off the final stretch of the campaign.
• Kao Nai-yun, a Democratic Progressive Party candidate for the New Taipei city council, showed up at 8am to be the first to file.
• She lost her last race by just 40 votes, and says being first this time is meant to signal how serious she is.
• She picked the hour on the advice of an I Ching teacher, and will later file jointly with DPP mayoral candidate Su Chiao-hui.

Outlook: With under three months to voting day, expect DPP candidates in New Taipei to campaign as a bloc to squeeze out margins in districts decided by a handful of votes.