As the nine-in-one elections enter their final stretch, the Kuomintang finds itself in tough fights in several counties and cities it currently governs — bad news for the blue camp, and an opportunity for the Democratic Progressive Party to win back territory.

• The nomination dispute in Changhua County has dragged on for more than four months. County Magistrate Wang Huei-mei, unhappy that party headquarters forced through its preferred candidate, has to date refused to appear at campaign events for the party's nominee.
• In Chiayi City, the blue and white camps are jointly backing the Taiwan People's Party's Chang Chi-kai, but with opponent Wang Mei-hui's deep local networks and cross-camp appeal, the blue camp has little cause for optimism.
• Yilan County is weighed down by the corruption case that led to the suspension of former magistrate Lin Zi-miao, while the candidate handpicked by Lai Ching-te enters the race backed by substantial resources.
• In Taichung, central coordination dragged on until the end of March before being settled, leaving Chiang Chi-chen off to a late start and denting grassroots morale.
• In Hsinchu County and Zhubei City, blue-white cooperation talks collapsed, and party chair Cheng Li-wun has faced questions over her inability to rein in local factions and her lack of leverage.

Outlook: If coordination continues to fail, the blue camp risks not only losing counties and cities it currently holds, but the spillover effects could also carry over into the 2028 presidential and legislative elections.