With less than two weeks remaining before the local elections on November 24, Taiwanese candidates are plying the streets, looking for votes. One popular way of getting the word out about a candidate is by handing out freebies… you might be surprised by which ones are getting the most attention in 2018.
Candidates love to hand out brochures. But Taiwanese voters prefer the freebies.
One woman says she woman likes pens, because they are useful. But a man that was interviewed said he doesn’t want anything. He says giveaways don’t really help people. A third person joked that he’d rather have cash.
But of course you can’t give that to voters. You can, however, give away things like these: toothpicks, a handy after-dinner item. Ginger tea can help heat up the race. Or one of the more innovative freebies is this expandable hat, that helps keep away the rain. Reusable drink holders help cut down on plastic bags.
At the end of the day, the most common giveaway is pens, with orders this month topping a million. Some have QR codes that direct voters to the candidate’s fan page; others have little notches that can be used to prop up a cell phone.
The second most popular giveaway is expandable fans, that can help you keep your cool in a heated debate.
And third is face masks — not to stop you from talking, but to help stop the spread of germs when you head to the ballot box.
