Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安), the KMT’s Taipei mayoral candidate, became the focus of political talk shows over the past week, with pundits scrutinizing whether he is ready to become mayor.
The discussions were sparked on Monday when Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Taipei mayoral candidate Chen Shih-chung (陳時中) handed over his duties as minister of health and welfare and head of the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) to his successors, and immediately began his election campaign.
Following the DPP Electoral Strategy Committee’s July 10 recommendation that Chen run for Taipei mayor, he launched a dedicated Facebook page the same day, resigned from his post on Thursday last week, revealed his campaign team on Saturday last week, published an autobiography on Sunday and held his first campaign event on Tuesday, where he announced that former vice president Chen Chien-jen (陳建仁) would be his campaign manager.
Chen’s swift actions showed that he is a competent candidate ready to take on the challenge, while Chiang, who took an early lead in the race when he on May 25 announced his candidacy in the KMT stronghold, suddenly seemed unprepared.
Chinese-language media said that Chiang’s campaign strategy has over the past week changed from Buddhist-style — “letting nature take its course” — to “lying flat,” with his slow and passive moves showing his inability to set the pace and theme of his campaign.
The final lineup of Chiang’s campaign team is still undecided almost two months after announcing his candidacy, and several team members have left the campaign, leading to speculation about his leadership and decisionmaking skills.
Facing Chen and, potentially, Taipei Deputy Mayor Vivian Huang (黃珊珊) — who is backed by Taipei Mayor and Taiwan People’s Party Chairman Ko Wen-je (柯文哲), but might run as an independent — Chiang also seems to have trouble setting an agenda and attracting attention from the media.
Chen had been health minister for about five years and head of the CECC for about two-and-a-half years, earning national recognition for his leadership during the COVID-19 pandemic, while Huang has been deputy mayor for nearly three years after serving more than 20 years as Taipei city councilor, proving that she is familiar with city politics.
Chiang in 2017 gained public attention for stalling the review of an amendment to the Labor Standards Act (勞基法), filibustering the debate for nearly three hours, but he lacks the experience he would need as Taipei mayor. His uninspiring personality and failed attempts to push KMT bills throught the legislature have left the public with a lukewarm impression, suggesting that his clout mostly stems from being the purported great-grandson of Chiang Kai-shek (蔣介石).
Chiang Wan-an on Tuesday tackled criticism of his campaign, saying that his team is increasingly taking shape and describing himself as “a warrior who will fight until the very end.”
However, his counterattack only drew more criticism, as he made the statement at a news conference on disease prevention in which his team was expected to explain his proposed policies. Instead, he accused Chen of poor performance in preventing a lingering COVID-19 outbreak, and suggested vague solutions such as “putting the health of city residents first” and using artificial intelligence “to enhance care services for the elderly, pregnant women and children.”
Chiang Wan-an should give his campaign a clear direction as soon as possible and fill vacancies in his team, including naming a campaign manager. Otherwise he would have to rely on the dwindling part of the electorate that traditionally votes for any KMT candidate.
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