TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – Penghu County Magistrate Chen Kuang-fu (陳光復) has vowed to stay in the race for the Nov. 28 elections despite the medical emergency he suffered last month, reports said Thursday.
The DPP politician is still recovering from surgery after he lost consciousness following a fall on a flight of stairs at a public event on Feb. 17. The DPP called a meeting Wednesday to discuss his condition and the status of the election campaign.
President Lai Ching-te (賴清德) presided over the meeting with DPP officials from Penghu, in his capacity as party chair, per CNA. He wanted to understand the opinions of local party cadres about how the election campaign should proceed.
Lai said doctors had reported that Chen, 70, would soon be allowed to leave the hospital, but it remained to be seen whether he would be able to face the pressure of campaigning. He headed the county from 2014 to 2018 and again from 2022.
Media reports named Magong Mayor Huang Jian-jhong (黃健忠) as a potential replacement for Chen. However, the incumbent posted a short statement on his Facebook page Wednesday, reading “Chen Kuang-fu will run until the end!”
Huang said that he was continuing his duties as the mayor of Penghu’s capital. In the event of a change, he said he would respect the process stipulated by DPP rules. A final decision on the choice of candidate is expected in May.
