Tseng Wen-hsueh Announces Bid for Toufen City Mayor with Blue-White Visual Design

(Central News Agency reporter Kuan Jui-ping, Miaoli County, June 15) Toufen City, the most populous administrative district in Miaoli County, has seen independent Miaoli County Councilor Tseng Wen-hsueh announce his candidacy for mayor. The first wave of promotional images features a 'blue-white' color scheme, and Tseng stated his desire to transform from a 'policy advisor' into an 'executor'.

In the upcoming local elections at year-end, Toufen City is Miaoli's largest electoral district and its mayoral race is drawing significant attention. Kuomintang-affiliated councilor Hsu Kung-fan has already declared his candidacy. On the pan-green side, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) has internally decided to endorse independent candidate Tseng Wen-hsueh, though Tseng remained silent until last night, when he changed his Facebook page cover to a bold 'Toufen Tseng Wen-hsueh – Mayoral Candidate,' drawing a surge of supporters offering encouragement.

In an interview today, Tseng noted that Toufen has shown vibrant growth in recent years with rising population and emerging new commercial zones. However, infrastructure development has failed to keep pace, and traffic congestion and urban decay in older districts have become increasingly evident. During his seven-plus years as councilor, he actively proposed numerous initiatives, but as councilors only have oversight and advisory powers, he often watched helplessly as administrative decisions diverged and opportunities were lost, leaving him frustrated and regretful.

Tseng stated that Toufen has significant development potential, prompting his decision to shift roles—from 'advisor' to 'executor.' He aims to leverage the city government's administrative power to implement citizens' expectations through concrete projects, including renovations of evening markets, morning markets, libraries, and community centers, as well as addressing traffic congestion and parking issues in the city center.

Local political analysts note that Miaoli is a major Hakka county, and Toufen, while retaining traditional Hakka village characteristics, has recently seen an influx of highly educated, young tech migrants due to spillover effects from the Hsinchu Science Park, making the electorate more diverse. Tseng, previously seen as leaning green, has deliberately adopted a gray background with blue-and-white text in his initial campaign imagery, signaling a cross-party appeal to attract more centrist voters.

Tseng emphasized that this election is not merely about competing against opponents, but about which candidate can present a better policy vision and urban development blueprint, allowing citizens to make the final choice. While public concerns may be similar, the real difference lies in execution capability and quality—'Who can do it better?' With over five months until the year-end vote, he believes this period is sufficient to fully present his vision and policy plans for Toufen's future and is confident in securing broad public support.

In response to Tseng's entry into the race, Hsu Kung-fan stated that as a native-born Toufen resident with deep local roots and long-term community service, he views the election not just as political competition but as a choice for the city's future direction. He plans to actively promote key policies including establishing care stations in all 35 villages, childcare subsidies via the 'Tongmeng Card,' upgraded elderly welfare, improved transportation networks, industrial transformation, smart education integration, and market and public facility renovations—fully advancing 'Toufen NEXT: Urban Upgrade 2.0'.

Hsu emphasized that Toufen is one of Miaoli's cities with the greatest development potential and is at a critical juncture of transformation and upgrading. As a local son, he is more committed than anyone to the city's continued progress. He will uphold a pragmatic, serious, and responsible attitude, step by step earning public trust to make Toufen better—ensuring youth have opportunities, seniors receive proper care, and every family shares in the city's advancement, leading Toufen into its next golden decade. (Editor: Chang Ya-ching) 1150615

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