Taiwan’s KMT to get presidential primaries moving, as mayor Han Kuo-yu hints at joining race
- Kaohsiung politician meets chairman of the mainland-friendly party in Taipei to discuss whether he is willing to run for the top job next year
- KMT says Han is ‘not opposed to being enlisted’ to join the primaries
Taiwan’s opposition party Kuomintang said it would get its primaries process moving, after a further sign the popular Kaohsiung mayor Han Kuo-yu might join the race for the 2020 presidential election.
The decision came after Han and KMT chairman Wu Den-yih met in Taipei on Tuesday to discuss the mayor’s willingness to run for the top job against President Tsai Ing-wen, of the ruling independence-leaning Democratic Progressive Party, KMT officials said.
“It’s right to say that Mayor Han is not opposed to being enlisted to join the other KMT politicians competing in the party’s primaries, as indicated in the last point of his statement,” said Angel Hung, deputy spokeswoman for the mainland-friendly KMT.
“We will go ahead with our plan to draft the primary regulations [to kick-start the process] that reflect the views of the aspirants,” she said, when asked to clarify whether Han had indicated he would run for president.
Earlier on Tuesday, Han told reporters after meeting Wu that he would not actively seek to join the primaries, but left the door open by saying he would take part if enlisted.