The History of Han Kuo-yu, Taiwan's New Legislative Speaker
The Kuomintang's Han Kuo-yu is a household name in Taiwan. The recalled ex-mayor of Kaohsiung has been elected the country's next legislative speaker. TaiwanPlus recaps Han's political career so far.
Transcript
00:00 "The eagle is flying, and the fox is playing.
00:05 Remember, be careful in every aspect."
00:10 Han Kuo-yu.
00:11 He's the boisterous politician who's been grabbing national headlines for decades.
00:16 He's now landed his most influential role yet.
00:19 The Kuomintang politician has survived scandals, a mayoral recall, and a spectacular presidential
00:25 election loss to Tsai Ing-wen in 2020.
00:29 Now he will serve as Taiwan's legislative speaker.
00:32 "It will be very interesting to see how this pans out.
00:36 He's a very affable and charismatic man.
00:38 He has a very solid support base.
00:40 Many in the KMT are very fond of him.
00:43 On the other hand, he has a reputation for not being necessarily very diplomatic, speaking
00:50 off the cuff and making gaffes, which may make it a little bit harder for him to maintain
00:58 the neutrality and the diplomatic nature of the position of Speaker of the Legislature."
01:06 Han's opening political stint was as a lawmaker in 1992.
01:10 In the very chamber he will now head.
01:13 This is when he first entered the spotlight, after assaulting then-fellow lawmaker Chen
01:18 Sui-bian, hospitalizing the future president.
01:22 After laying low for years, Han re-emerged in 2018 to run for Kaohsiung City Mayor in
01:28 a race seen as a sure-fire win for rival party the DPP.
01:33 "The KMT is not the father of Kaohsiung people.
01:35 Why do we have to vote for it every time?
01:37 The people are the father of the party."
01:40 In a shock victory, Han landed the job with lofty economic promises.
01:46 Just three months later, he shifted gear to bid for Taiwan's top office against incumbent
01:51 President Tsai Ing-wen.
01:53 But he lost, and by a large margin.
02:01 Then another blow.
02:02 Kaohsiung residents voted Han out as mayor, the first in Taiwan's democratic history.
02:08 Analysts back then said it would be hard for the KMT to bounce back.
02:28 Today the opposition party is still fighting to stay relevant, after losing the presidential
02:33 race to give the ruling DPP a historic third straight term in office, while a third reformist
02:40 party continues to gain influence.
02:43 But the KMT's role in local politics is far from over, having won the most seats in the
02:48 country's legislature, giving it the speakership.
02:51 Now with tough-talking Han at the helm, the stage is set for some lively debates over
02:56 the country's future.
02:58 James Lin and Joyce Sun for Taiwan Plus.
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