The Hsinchu City mayoral race has started early. That is bad news for incumbent mayor Kao Hung-an, and good news for opponents hoping to see cooperation between the Kuomintang (KMT) and the Taiwan People's Party (TPP) fall apart.

• Former KMT spokesman Ho Chih-yung has announced his candidacy for mayor of Hsinchu City, openly training his fire on Kao Hung-an.
• He criticised Kao for having no record of achievements while using "blue-white cooperation" to hold the KMT hostage, which amounts to coasting to re-election and is not democracy.
• KMT chairwoman Cheng Li-wun is inclined to "yield" Hsinchu City to the TPP, with an eye on the election picture across all 22 cities and counties and on a change of ruling party in 2028.
• Ho said that in 2022 residents crossed party lines to vote for Kao because they had expectations of her, and that this trust has now been betrayed.
• He also cited the city government's failure to synchronise its one-way street controls with Google Maps and Apple Maps, which led to residents being directed by navigation apps onto roads they could not use, and he called for a public debate.

Outlook: Blue-white integration in Hsinchu City will become increasingly difficult to negotiate, and Kao Hung-an must first face a challenge from within the KMT.