TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Former legislator Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安), an alleged great-grandson of leader Chiang Kai-shek, defeated a popular former health minister and a former deputy mayor to win the mayoralty of Taipei City back for the Kuomintang (KMT) in Taiwan's local elections on Saturday (Nov. 26).
When Chiang, 43, mounted the stage at his campaign headquarters at 8 p.m., four hours after voting ended, he was leading with about 42% of the vote. He was well ahead of Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) candidate Chen Shih-chung (陳時中), who had about 31%, and independent Huang Shan-shan (黃珊珊), who trailed with 25% of the vote share, according to preliminary data from the Central Election Commission (CEC). Both Chen and Huang had already conceded defeat when Chiang took the stage to claim victory.
During the campaign, Chiang promoted the idea of the capital as a Taiwanese version of Silicon Valley. He also attracted attention as the youngest of the three main candidates, and for his claimed lineage as a descendant of the late dictator Chiang Kai-shek, who ruled Taiwan from 1945 until his death in 1975. The mayor-elect is also the son of former Foreign Minister John Chiang (蔣孝嚴).
The DPP's candidate, Chen Shih-chung, became a familiar face to people across the country when the COVID-19 pandemic erupted in 2020. People saw him present almost daily news conferences reporting on the state of infections and announcing new measures.
The independent candidate Huang Shan-shan served as the deputy to outgoing Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲), and received the support of the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) which Ko founded and still chairs. Ko was first elected mayor in 2014 with the support of the DPP, ending 16 years of KMT rule. He is widely believed to be preparing a bid for the next presidential election, which will be held in January 2024.
Apart from being the capital of Taiwan, Taipei City is also seen as a stepping stone for presidential campaigns in the country, with three of its former mayors having been later elected to the presidency.
