Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) on Thursday, October 1, announced corrections to the list of 26 registered local election candidates, who had previously held Chinese household registration.

MAC and the National Immigration Agency verified the candidate list and corrected the figure to 25, noting that one entry had been recorded erroneously. Moreover, MAC Deputy Minister and Spokesperson Liang Wen-chieh (梁文傑) stated that out of the 25 registered individuals, four had not submitted proof of having renounced their Chinese household registration, while another seven had submitted such proof but had not yet reached the required 10-year period since deregistration.

Liang said that MAC’s policy position is clear: individuals must submit proof of renouncing their Chinese household registration at least 10 years prior in order to be eligible to run for office. He said that election authorities will make the final determination on candidate eligibility. They are expected to complete their review by October 17.