TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) 鈥 Taiwan鈥檚 two main opposition parties, both of which have vowed to restart talks with China, announced a joint presidential ticket for January鈥檚 election in a deal that could bring a major political upset in the self-ruled island democracy.
The agreement would bring together Hou Yu-ih, the presidential candidate for the Kuomintang, one of Taiwan鈥檚 two major political parties, and Ko Wen-je, of the independent Taiwan People鈥檚 Party.
Up until now, both Hou and Ko have trailed in polls behind frontrunner William Lai, the Democratic Progressive Party鈥檚 candidate who currently serves as vice president.
Lai and incumbent President Tsai Ing-wen have both been criticized by Beijing as separatists who should be blamed in the event a war erupts across the Taiwan Strait. as part of its territory and has not renounced the use of force to take control over it.
The Kuomintang, also known as KMT, has had a friendlier relationship with Beijing during former President Ma Ying-jeou鈥檚 two terms, between 2008 and 2016.
The KMT maintains better communication with China is necessary to avoid a conflict. Meanwhile, the DPP鈥檚 line of argument is that Taiwan does not seek to separate itself from China because it is already an independent country.
Ma on Wednesday hosted a meeting between Hou and Ko at which the two candidates agreed to use opinion polls conducted between Nov. 7-17 to determine the makeup of their presidential ticket, with the result to be announced on Saturday.
Hou said he and Ko's teams have 鈥減ut aside their personal interests and moved forward鈥 for a 鈥渃ommon ideal, for the security of the country, and the well-being of the people.鈥
Ko, meanwhile, called on the two parties to work together so 鈥渨e can move forward.鈥
Some polls have shown that if Hou and Ko were to team up, regardless of who would be the presidential candidate and the running mate, they could beat Lai, who is expected to run alongside Hsiao Bi-khim, Taiwan鈥檚 representative to the United States. The DPP has yet to confirm Hsiao as Lai's running mate.
A fourth candidate, the billionaire founder of tech giant Foxconn, is also running for president.
