From the very beginning of the campaign it was thought that Hsieh had little chance of winning, having been involved in the Sung Chi-li cult scandal and facing an incumbent with eight years of experience as mayor. At first, there was much less coverage of the Kaohsiung mayoral race.
一開始，謝長廷因背負著「宋七力事件」之陰影，又是對抗執政已達八年的在位者，選情預估並不樂觀，而高雄市的選舉新聞熱度也遠遜於台北。