Taiwan's local election registration is wrapping up, and the KMT's Taichung campaign is off to a showy start while cracks show elsewhere in the party.

• Chiang Chi-chen ran four kilometres in his old marine-frogman red shorts, carrying a battle flag, to register for Taichung mayor.
• Outgoing mayor Lu Shiu-yen backed him as her successor, pinning the city emblem on his sleeve and crediting him with pulling in central government money for projects like the Dongfeng expressway.
• KMT chair Cheng Li-wen got a public dressing-down in Hsinchu from a former county chief, who blamed her for the failed blue-white alliance and called her the party's biggest liability.
• Other races are getting crowded: an influencer is challenging a sitting Chiayi councillor, and a 38-year-old political newcomer has joined the Tainan mayor race against both major parties.

Outlook: Registration closes tomorrow, with the November vote widely read as a dry run for the 2028 presidential race.