Former Deputy Taipei Mayor Huang Shan-shan (???) announced Sunday that she will run for Taipei mayor, as her resignation from the city government officially took effect.
The 52-year-old Huang had long been expected to run in this year’s race, and was the top choice of incumbent Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (???), who praised Huang on Sunday as “the best person” for the job.
Ko is chairman of the relatively new Taiwan People’s Party (TPP), while Huang has been a member of the fringe People’s First Party, but she has decided to run for mayor as an independent.
She will be up against Chen Shih-chung (???) of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party and Chiang Wan-an (???) of the main opposition Kuomintang in the late November elections for local government positions to be held around Taiwan.
Huang made the announcement at a press conference in Neihu District attended by Ko, city ward chiefs, business leaders, and TPP city council candidates. There, she unveiled her election slogan “Taipei K33P Going!”
The phrase K33P reflects her close links with Ko, who has been nicknamed KP since his days as a professor at National Taiwan University’s College of Medicine. The figure “33” in Chinese sounds the same as Huang’s first name.
The idea of keeping Taipei moving forward was what motivated her to enter the race, she said at the press event.
She also said she believed that whoever served as Taipei mayor had to be able to bring the city’s different ethnic groups together to benefit the city’s development.
Huang expects to present her key policy platforms on Sept. 1, though she hinted Sunday they will be based on Ko’s plans to seek the balanced development of the northern, southern, eastern and western districts of the city.
Meanwhile, according to Huang’s close aides, she will unveil the members of her campaign team by mid-September.
Source: Focus Taiwan News Channel