Taiwanese media reported that Puma Shen, the DPP candidate for Taipei mayor, shared a rally stage with badminton star Lee Yang. Lee avoided talk of the election and spoke about sports, while a KMT figure answered Shen's remarks by calling them ‘so cringe’.
According to a United Daily News headline, Lee Yang took the stage at one of Shen's rallies for the first time and avoided the election, speaking about his vision for sports. A Liberty Times headline said Shen took a swipe at Chiang Wan-an at a ‘night of caution and trepidation’ event, and the KMT camp's Chung Pei-chun shot back that it was ‘so cringe’. The remarks themselves, the venue and the turnout could not be confirmed.
광고 문의 · 300×250Shen had made a similar point at the Legislative Yuan on Nov. 4. Mirror Media reported that he called the Ko-Chiang pairing a big wave and said his camp, as the chaser, is ‘cautious and wary’. He added that his August walk through Ningxia Night Market was the starting point of the ‘Ocean Current’ boom.
Backers and small side stories
A United Daily News headline said big names backed Shen's ‘Ocean Current’ car tour through the Nangang-Neihu area, and Premier Cho Jung-tai appeared quietly at an intersection to cheer. Details and the scene on the ground were not confirmed.
Another report said unlicensed vendors near the rally sold ‘Ocean Current’ ribbons for NT$50 each. It was read as popularity spilling over into nearby trade, but whether it was cracked down on or how the campaign responded is unconfirmed.
Online buzz also comes with numbers. NOWnews cited a Sept. 20 analysis by the Facebook page ‘Voice Watch Politics’ putting YouTube political-livestream viewing among pan-green audiences at about 109,000 for Shen and 55,000-56,000 for Chiang. That is a rough estimate from a single page and is not the same as voter support, which still awaits formal polling.