Who's Gonna Be Taiwan's Next Top Political Leader?
Taiwan's General Election will be held in the coming Saturday,16 January 2016. On this day, the 14th President and Vice-President, and 113 seats of the 9th Legislative Yuan will be elected. In the past two years, the will for young Taiwanese to participate in political affairs has seen a great advance through numerous social movements and protests. Therefore, this election is deemed as an important chance for a brand new political climate in Taiwan. As renowned writer-director Wu Nien-Jen puts it, "the future belongs to the young". So this time, it's up to the youth to take up the responsibility and VOTE! Like It Formosa invites you to look into Taiwan's 2016 General Election! Let's see the 3 presidential candidates in this election.
Taiwan is the only Chinese-speaking democracy in the world. 16 January will see the 14th presidential and the 9th legislative election. This election is closely watched by the world as it is the 1st general election after the massive student movement in 2014 and the historic Ma-Xi meeting 2 months ago.
No.1 Eric Chu (Chu Li-Lun) Age: 55 Alliance: Pan-Blue Party: KMT Position: Chairman of KMT and Mayor of New Taipei Expertise: Accounting, finance Campaign Slogan: One Taiwan; Taiwan is power Dream: Becoming a folk singer Icon: Tamsui Grandma Favorite Sport: morning exercises As a rising political star, Chu who comes from a political family is seen by the KMT as the party's best chance of winning the 2016 election. He worked in academia and started his political career as a elected legislator. Chu is the incumbent Mayor of New Taipei city, a position he is taking on leave to focus on his presidential campaign.
No. 2 Tsai Ing-Wen Age: 59 Alliance: Pan-Green Party: DPP Position: Chairwoman of the DPP Expertise: Law, Economics Campaign slogan: Light Up Taiwan Favorite movie character: Master Yoda Most hated vegetable: water spinach Hashtag: #catslave After getting her PhD degree in the U.K., Tsai came back to Taiwan and became a law professor. Then she devoted herself into politics and served as the Minister of the Mainland Affairs Council, a legislator, and the Vice Premier. Tsai was nominated by the DPP as the 2012 presidential candidate but lost the election to Ma Ying-Jeou. For the past four years, Tsai has been preparing for and hoping to be elected as the first female president in Taiwan.
No. 3 James Soong Age: 73 Alliance: Pan-Blue Party: PFP, People First Party Position: Chairman of PFP Expertise: Political Science; International relations Campaign slogan: Take this step and find the way out together (跨出這一步 一起找出路) Hobby: Running... for presidential election (ran 3 times out of the 6 presidential elections in Taiwan history) Favorite movie: Fantastic 4 Favorite game: Mud fight Since 1974, Soong has gained a number of senior experiences in the public sector. His past title includes Personal Secretary to the President, Director-General of the Government Information Office, Government Spokesman and Taiwan Provincial Governor. He also founded and chairs the People First Party (PFP) in the year of 2000, after a lost in the presidential election by a narrow margin. He believes the past experiences make him an irreplaceable candidate, who will provide practical solutions to the tough challenges that Taiwan faces.
