Wu Hsiu-hua, the Kuomintang nominee and current Taitung County Council speaker, leads trader consensus due to the county’s consistent KMT structural advantage in local elections and her established local party role. The November 28, 2026, contest has narrowed to a two-way race after DPP legislator Chen Ying consolidated opposition support following former legislator Liu Chao-hao’s withdrawal in July 2026. Chen’s indigenous Puyuma background and family ties to a prior magistrate provide her strongest appeal in a county where roughly one-quarter of voters are indigenous, yet no DPP candidate has previously captured the magistrate post. Both nominees face ongoing legal scrutiny tied to family or public-works matters, though these have not shifted the implied probabilities. Registration closed in early September, leaving independent Li Wu Ying-chih with minimal market traction.