News Snapshot:
Mr Hou, who trails Mr Lai in polling by a small margin, pledged to protect Taiwan’s status quo as a self-governed nation rather than support unification with mainland China. He is also trying to play down perceptions that his party would kowtow to Beijing, which he conceded was a threat to the nation’s democracy. China and the KMT have singled out past comments by Mr Lai indicating he supported Taiwan’s formal independence. He has since shied away from these in favour of its current sovereignty without formal diplomatic recognition as a fully independent country. China’s Taiwan Affairs Office also made...
