The race for New Taipei mayor has officially heated up, with the Democratic Progressive Party and Kuomintang candidates both campaigning in local districts on the same day — a windfall for local voters, and the opening of a hard-fought contest for the two parties.

• Su Chiao-hui announced that on September 2 she will lead 36 councillors and council candidates to the election commission to register, making unity her central theme.
• Lee Shih-chuan responded to incumbent Mayor Hou Yu-ih publicly naming him as his successor, saying he would definitely take the baton and win the election at the end of the year.
• Both candidates spent the day attending Zhongyuan Pudu ceremonies and banquets for senior citizens, and were greeted with chants of "dongsuan" (get elected) at every stop.
• Lee Shih-chuan laid out policy proposals: allowing 300 of the 600 monthly points on the senior citizens' card to be used as EasyCard credit, extending the undergrounding of the Shulin railway to Yingge, and planning a Dahan River MRT trunk line.
• Su Chiao-hui focused on delivery and local character, calling for each of New Taipei's 29 districts to have its own highlight under a goal she described as turning "satellites into a galaxy of stars."

Outlook: Once both candidates have completed registration, New Taipei will enter a head-to-head blue-green contest, with transport infrastructure and senior welfare likely to become the main lines of attack and defence.