KMT’s Chu, PFP’s Soong announce running mates

2015/11/20

Ruling Kuomintang Chairman Eric Chu announced Nov. 18 that he has chosen former Minister of Labor Wang Ju-hsuan as his running mate in the 2016 ROC presidential election.

The pair will be competing against opposition Democratic Progressive Party Chairwoman Tsai Ing-wen and former Academia Sinica Vice President Chen Chien-jen, as well as People First Party Chairman James Soong and Legislator Hsu Hsin-ying.

This marks the first time that all the tickets in the ROC’s presidential race include a woman candidate and none of the vice presidential picks are members of their respective nominating parties.

According to Chu, the choice was made in the interests of the people and Taiwan’s future. “Wang is a lawyer with proven experience in civil service, and she has been dedicated throughout her career to fighting for social justice as well as the rights of women and the underprivileged.

“Her background complements my financial and economic experience,” Chu said. “We are more than confident that we can take the nation’s development to the next level by striking a balance between economic growth and social equality while furthering the advances in cross-strait stability.”

Wang holds a doctoral degree in law from Beijing-based Renmin University of China. While serving as the labor minister from 2008 to 2012, she was noted for promoting the rights of workers and seeking to raise the minimum wages for domestic and foreign laborers.

Describing herself as an advocate of equality and justice, Wang acknowledged the challenges the KMT faces in winning the presidential election. She vowed to focus all her energy on the task for the benefit of Taiwan’s people.

Soong’s running mate Hsu, meanwhile, is currently a legislator representing Hsinchu County. A former KMT member, she founded a new party, the Minkuotang, in March 2015. The PFP-MKT ticket is expected to facilitate further inter-party cooperation going forward.

The upcoming presidential election, to be held concurrently with the legislative ballots, is scheduled for Jan. 16 next year.

Source: Taiwan Today (http://taiwantoday.tw/ct.asp?xItem=239105&ctNode=2194&mp=9)