* With both President Tsai Ing-wen and Kaohsiung Mayor Han Kuo-yu returning today from overseas trips, the presidential primaries for both the DPP and the KMT are about to move up a notch, indications are that neither major party has a clear favourite, with the elections just nine months away.
* There doesn't appear to be much room for intra-party reconciliation between Tsai and former Premier William Chin-teh Lai. To launch his primary bid, Lai just came out with a tell-all book that detailed his differences with Tsai over issues ranging from independence to pardoning former President Chen Shui-bian.
* With Lai currently leading Tsai in various polls, the contest will be a hard-fought battle for both. Since recent efforts by party seniors at bridging the two sides have proved to be futile, most expect the primary to run its course and produce a DPP nominee by mid-April.
* The KMT, on the other hand, has its hands full with a field of five hopefuls (three already declared, two are undecided). Though he has made his intentions clear, Han Kuo-yu remains the clear favourite in the polls and among the rank-and-file. Han does not have a justification for running because he's been Kaohsiung mayor for just four months.
* If he runs and gets the nomination, Han will be under tremendous pressure, mostly from the city council and the DPP, to resign. When, and if, that happens, the DPP would likely exploit the opportunity and regain the mayoral seat it has held for over two decades in the subsequent by-election. All things considered, it would not be an easy decision for either Han to the KMT.
* As the weather turns warmer, Taiwan's domestic political scene is about to get a lot hotter. Barring something unforeseen, the DPP will have a presidential nominee by mid-April, but the KMT could take months, until it holds the next party congress in July to confirm the nominee.
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