Registration for Taiwan's local elections has closed, and every seat in the Matsu islands' Lienchiang County will be contested rather than won by default — a modest win for voters there.

• Two people registered for county magistrate and 14 for the county council, so no seat goes uncontested.
• The KMT dominates the field, with several sitting councillors seeking re-election and one township chief switching to a council run.
• The DPP did not field anyone for magistrate or council, backing only a handful of village-level candidates.
• Because the county is spread across separate islands, most candidates were allowed to register locally instead of travelling to the main island.
• Rough seas cancelled a ferry and forced one sitting councillor to sail a day early to make the deadline.

Outlook: Campaigning now begins in a race the KMT is heavily favoured to control, with local issues like harbours, housing and healthcare leading the debate.