New Taipei City ends up last in the country for per-person central government tax money next year, and the two candidates for mayor are blaming each other's parties for it.

• New Taipei residents get the lowest per-person share of centrally allocated tax money in Taiwan, while Taipei gets double that despite having 1.6 million fewer people and a fraction of the land area.
• KMT candidate Li Si-chuan says the central government is playing both sides — raising the tax allocation while cutting project and general grants — and wants DPP legislator Su Chiao-hui to fight for the city's money.
• Su's campaign fires back that the current formula comes from a KMT-backed revision pushed by caucus leader Fu Kun-chi, which DPP lawmakers and the city's own finance chief objected to at the time.
• Su's side also attacks Li's spending record in Taipei, pointing to costly shade structures still unfinished after a year and rusted-out bus shelters.
• Li is campaigning on tech, promising to push ahead with the second phase of a smart industry park in Xindian to draw AI companies.

Outlook: Expect the funding formula to stay a central fight in the New Taipei mayoral race, with neither side likely to change it before the vote.