A public rift has emerged in the Blue camp's pre-election consolidation efforts in Hsinchu County — bad news for the Kuomintang, and an opportunity for the Democratic Progressive Party.

• Former Hsinchu County Magistrate Fan Chen-tsung said, to KMT Chairwoman Cheng Li-wun's face, that if the party loses the county magistrate election she would be the "chief culprit."
• He singled out the failed Blue-White coordination in the Zhubei City mayoral race as a "strategic error," adding that consolidation within the party had not been completed either.
• Cheng Li-wun responded that she had already "given it everything she had," and stressed that the campaign was shaping up as a Blue-Green contest with Blue-White cooperation.
• Magistrate candidate Hsu Hsin-ying completed her registration, campaigning on a county governance blueprint that gives equal weight to AI technology and Hakka culture.
• Deputy Magistrate Chen Chien-hsien, who lost the primary, hinted on Facebook that he would not offer unconditional support, indicating that divisions within the party persist.

Outlook: whether the Blue and White camps can successfully coordinate in Zhubei will determine the KMT's chances of holding on to Hsinchu County.