Taiwan's 2026 Taipei mayor race is heating up, with the ruling DPP's candidate pushing hard for a face-to-face debate that the incumbent has so far dodged — a sign of confidence for the challenger and pressure on Chiang Wan-an.

• Shen Po-yang wants to be first in line to debate Chiang Wan-an, and hopes to meet him on candidate registration day.
• The line is getting longer: Kaohsiung DPP candidate Lai Jui-lung also wants a debate after Chiang questioned an Kaohsiung fishing port spending plan.
• Chiang deflected, suggesting Lai should sort out his own party's rivals in Tainan first.
• A poll found most Taipei residents thought Chiang's high-profile street protest flopped — a warning sign for his re-election bid.
• Chiang is playing defense on a child-protection scandal after a 10-year-old girl's abuse case took 240 days to reach placement, while touting a new metro station after a decade of construction.

Outlook: Expect more sparring over whether a debate happens at all, with Chiang likely to keep avoiding a direct match-up while leaning on infrastructure wins.