More than 30 lawmakers from the ruling Kuomintang (KMT) have signed a petition urging party chairman Eric Chu to run for president in 2016.
During a KMT caucus meeting on Friday, over half of the party’s 64 lawmakers called on Chu to take up the challenge. Chu took over the chairmanship of the KMT from President Ma Ying-jeou in January, after Ma resigned to take responsibility for the party’s heavy losses in last November’s local government elections.
The KMT has yet to field a candidate for the presidential election, which is scheduled for January next year. With less than a year to go, many KMT politicians are voicing concerns. Former vice chairperson of the party Hung Hsiu-chu, who is also Vice President of the Legislature, said she is worried about the time it could take to drum up support.
"At least throw your hat into the ring by the end of April! The party’s nomination process will probably take place in May or June," Hung said. "Then we have a month to look at all those who express an interest in running. If the process starts too late, there might not be enough time for us to rally supporters. This is what I’m worried about."
The KMT nominee is expected to run against chairwoman of the opposition Democratic Progressive Party Tsai Ing-wen.