Young Voters, Returnees Cheer KMT Candidate Han Kuo-yu’s Last Hurrah

Thursday evening saw the last major Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) rally of the election season as supporters of presidential candidate Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜) flooded Ketagalan Boulevard in the heart of Taipei.

Organizers had called for one million participants to attend the rally, held outside Taiwan’s presidential office. While it was certainly well-attended, a more reasonable estimate would be around 300,000 to 400,000 supporters cheering on the Kaohsiung mayor and KMT nominee.

However, the crowd made up for it with their sheer enthusiasm. By 5 p.m., the official start time, people were streaming in down Taipei’s Xinyi Road in a jubilant mood. Most people had brought a friend, while others were in groups holding banners.

In marked contrast to other Han rallies I have attended, where there has been a marked wariness of the press, Han supporters proactively sought me out and offered to share their thoughts.

Another noticeable difference was the presence of younger first-time voters.

While the numbers were certainly not high, other Han rallies have seen an almost complete dearth of this demographic. In contrast to the more close-knit older contingency, those in their early 20s tended to be in pairs.

Benny, 24, works in the tourism industry. He has already decided in firm favor of voting for Han, saying that the industry has suffered from the tenure of incumbent President Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文). Since Tsai’s election in 2016, Beijing has severely restricted Chinese tourism to Taiwan—a move which hasn’t stopped Taiwan from registering a record number of tourist arrivals in 2019.

Han, he believes, can revive cross-strait tourism from China and reverse the decline.

Benny said that Taiwan’s media is controlled by the incumbent party, who are “unfriendly” toward pan-blue figures such as Han, Terry Gou (郭台銘) and Taipei mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲). He uses social media, such as Instagram and Facebook, to source his news, but said that he is afraid to speak his mind about Tsai on social media for fear of being attacked or bullied.

Benny was with his friend Harry, 22, who works as a chef. Harry, who said he just happened to be in the area, is certain he will vote on Saturday, but is yet to make a final decision on which way.

Tang, 20, had sloped off to the side of the rally to have a cigarette. He was blunt when asked why he had attended, saying that he simply cannot stand Tsai Ing-wen.

“Everyone is looking forward to change,” he said, adding that he had come with a fellow student.

The ‘Han army’ crowds Ketagalan Boulevard. (Photo: Charlie H.)

As Han spoke onstage, the crowds were jammed in along the outer fence, which is where I spotted Zheng, 21, a rather glum-looking young man squeezed in an awkward position against the barrier by a hugely enthusiastic group of Han supporters. As we spoke, a cheerful elderly woman, back from Chicago for election season, excitedly filmed us on her mobile phone, and Zheng’s answers were carefully guarded. Asked if he felt inspired by his first ever-rally, he replied it was “OK, very crowded.”

Zheng, who hails from Penghu, has already brought his tickets to go home and vote, but he declined to state his preferred candidate. However, he quietly replied in the negative when asked if he had a favorite Han policy.

At the opposite end of the spectrum was student Cody, 20, from New Taipei, who was at the rally with her classmate. She had thoroughly enjoyed the experience of her first political rally, praising it as renao (a cheerfully bustling atmosphere). Cody had already researched her local candidates—including for the legislator-at-large seats, or party list—and decided to vote across the board for the KMT. Cody praised Han’s performance as Kaohsiung mayor and his man-of-the-people approach while expressing a dislike for Tsai’s ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP).

However, the vast majority of the crowd in attendance last night were in the older demographic.

Len-yi, 45, had brought along her daughter Maggie, 16, who attends the nearby high school. Both Maggie and her mother said that they were concerned about the education system in Taiwan. Len-yi said that the system has seen too many changes, and she hoped that a Han presidency would change it to see a more globally-focused approach.

Maggie felt that there was too much focus on testing and memorizing books and said she would prefer to have a chance to do more reports and projects at school, which she feels would more accurately show student’s potential. This was Maggie’s first experience of a political rally. She expressed bemusement at why people had turned out in droves for Han and described herself as “not political.”

Len-yi was critical of Tsai’s approach to international relations, claiming that Tsai discourages the use of the Republic of China (ROC) flag on visits abroad and does not identify as “Chinese.” When asked how they identified themselves, Maggie replied “Taiwanese.” Her mother identified as a ROC citizen.

Len-yi, who sells medical equipment, referenced the ongoing pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong, saying a visit there in November had brought her into contact with many older people who disapproved of the “fighting” on the streets by the younger generation—a scene she said reminded her of Baghdad.

Asked about her hopes for the future of cross-strait relations, Len-yi suggested that Beijing would allow for a peaceful solution and would not treat Taiwan in the same manner as Hong Kong.

Michael, 65, a retired air force colonel, bemoaned the freeze in cultural and academic exchange under the Tsai-administration, citing overly complex regulations as the root of the problem. He is confident that tensions across the Taiwan Strait will ease if Han is elected. He admitted, however, that it would be a difficult situation as Han supports the so-called “1992 consensus” while Beijing is insistent on a “one country two systems” formula that is not acceptable to the Taiwanese people, or to Han himself.

Michael—who is a KMT party member and part of the “800 Soldiers” group who fought against pension reform—said that many of the attendees at the rally came from the “four pillars” of teachers, military, police and civil servants. He acknowledged that pension reform, passed in 2017 amid heavy KMT opposition, is a done deal, but said at least he hoped that Han might apologize for the situation should he be elected.

Although Michael says he will remain in the KMT, he described Han’s campaign as having suffered by Han trying to conform to KMT ideals. However, he said, “a month ago, he had a big comeback, a return to his mayoral campaign-style, when he came out and said that he doesn’t like the KMT.”

Michael said that Han has promised the people to wipe out corruption in the KMT and that a vote for Han is therefore not necessarily a vote for the KMT. “Han will keep a distance from the party apparatus,” he predicted, “which is important because 80% to 90% of the population do not like the KMT.”

A group of former civil servants at Thursday’s Han Kuo-yu rally. (Photo: Cat Thomas)

Thursday morning saw the breaking of a bombshell story of alleged attempted bribery by KMT secretary general Alex Tsai (蔡正元). When the rally began yesterday afternoon, however, not many people seemed to be familiar with the ins and outs of the news.

Nicholas Tse, a retired international intelligence analyst with Taiwan’s National Security Bureau, said he had come to the rally straight from teaching six hours of classes at a local university. He said he would wait to see what the Australian authorities said over the next couple of days.

Tse expressed doubt that self-confessed defected Chinese Communist Party agent Wang Liqiang (王立強) could have held a key position in an intelligence agency at his young age, but reserved judgment on the allegations made on Thursday morning in The Age and the Sydney Morning Herald, having not had time to acquaint himself fully with the news.

Australian authorities confirmed late last night they are investigating Alex Tsai and are reviewing text messages from Tsai to Wang Liqiang.

Along with the regular “Han army,” largely packed into the seated area on Ketagalan Boulevard after arriving early, last night also saw Taiwanese returning home to vote from the United States and attending their first rally of the season.

Judy, 73, flew in on Wednesday evening to vote. As an educator based in Chicago, Judy will stay only a few days in Taiwan to vote and will be joined by her San Francisco based daughter, who will fly in on Saturday morning just in time to cast her ballot.

Judy said she makes a point of returning to vote each presidential election. Describing herself as a voter who puts candidate over party, she felt so frustrated by the KMT’s change of candidate in 2016 she voted for the New Party in protest for the party list. This year, she will vote for Han, but she is not registered for a legislator-at-large ballot.

Judy claimed Tsai has done a “terrible job,” accusing Tsai of blackmail and bribery and claiming the DPP is full of corruption, with every member of her administration involved.

“If you look at the websites, at the rumors, they are all black (corrupt),” she said.

Judy said the DPP had both legislated against false news and was responsible for spreading false news, and claimed that the only media outlet to support Han was the Want Want China Times-owned CTi network. Despite living abroad, Judy makes sure she keeps up with local news by tuning in online.

“I only watch CTi. Although I work, I make sure to tune in for four hours a day,” she said. “They really dig up reports on the current party. That’s how I know about all the terrible things the they have been doing.”

Han supporters hold a banner reading: ‘If the KMT doesn’t win, Taiwan will suffer.’ (Photo: Charlie H.)

In an election season that might best be described as light on policy and heavy on ideology on both sides, passions are running high as Saturday’s vote looms.

Asked how politicians from either side might work toward calming the mood past-election, Michael, the retired air force colonel, was pessimistic.

“I don’t see a bright future for Taiwan,” he said. “I’m not afraid so much of ‘red China’ as I am of our own people because we are not united. Every two years we are divided by ideology, and I see no way to bring us back together.”

(Cover photo by Charlie H.)