The Fall of Kaohsiung Mayor Han Kuo-yu

Haiway Chen, a student at the University of Toronto, was among a small group of overseas Taiwanese students who voted in this election after returning to Taiwan due to the global coronavirus pandemic. He said the recall vote was an opportunity for the people of Kaohsiung to redeem their decision to vote Han into office.

Han “let down a lot of people by trying to run for president,” he said. “Not to mention how he has done a poor job as mayor and is pretty classless publicly”—a reference to poor perceptions of Han during his presidential campaign and frequent gaffes during his tenure.

At an international press conference timed for 6.06 p.m.—a reference to the recall date of June 6—the recall organizers called upon their supporters to reconcile their differences with Han supporters. “It’s time to put down any conflicts and face the issues ahead,” said WeCare organizer Aaron Yin 尹立.

A pro-Han poster (Credit Milo Hsieh)

How did Han fall from a presidential nominee of the KMT to being recalled as mayor? Han’s meteoric rise and pursuit of higher political posts, backed by fervent supporters in a phenomenon known as the “Han wave,” may have been exactly what led his downfall.

Han’s ascent to become mayor of Kaohsiung had broken a two-decade stranglehold on power in the city by the DPP.

The Beijing-friendly politician took Taiwan by storm in late 2018 in the fall elections, and his rise continued as he defeated Foxconn tycoon Terry Gou 郭台銘 in the KMT presidential primary in July 2019.

Han’s wave perhaps saw its crest during the summer and fall, however, when President Tsai Ing-wen 蔡英文 took an assertive stance on Taiwan’s sovereignty that amplified Han’s tendency to turn his gaze toward China, making promises of prosperity via cross-strait trade that voters quickly perceived as being empty.

Han’s presidential campaign was also seen as a move made out of his own political interest, despite having campaigned for Kaohsiung mayor as an everyday man, one-with-the-people candidate. Residents were further unimpressed when his presidential campaign took him away from his mayoral duties with an official leave of absence for three months.

WeCare Kaohsiung, one of the organizations leading the recall movement, along with the Taiwan Statebuilding Party (TSP) and Citizens Mowing Action, led droves to generate support for Han’s ouster. On December 21, shortly before the presidential election, hundreds of thousands gathered in an anti-Han rally in Kaohsiung.

The four leaders of the recall effort speak after the successful recall (Credit: WeCare)

In January, Tsai defeated Han in a landslide to win a second presidential term. Han resumed his mayoral duties, but many residents saw him as someone who had run away from his post only to fail in pursuit of his real goal.

Over the next few months, the recall campaign ran strong and with the organizers comfortably collecting the required petitions for the CEC to approve the recall motion.

Han’s Return to Kaohsiung

In Kaohsiung, Han’s unimpressive early mayoral tenure caught up with him after his loss. Han failed to deliver on promises made in his mayoral campaign such as opening a Disney theme park in Kaohsiung and inviting Arnold Schwarzenegger to the city. Han’s frequent promises were outlandish, and he sought to deliver symbolic results such as announcing that a deal had been struck to bring Marvel’s superheroes to Kaohsiung, and construct a “Ferris Wheel of Love” next to Kaohsiung’s Love River.

These promises were often used to mock Han by his opponents.

Many voters for Han had supported him out of a desire for a change from the DPP, which had held the mayorship for 20 years prior to Han winning in the 2018 mayoral election. They voted Han in when he promised to return Kaohsiung to greatness after painting it as “old and poor,” but saw that Han did little to improve Kaohsiung.

Among the near-million voters in the recall were many Taiwanese students and young professionals whose electoral residency is registered in Kaohsiung and had made their way back home, just to vote to take down Han.

Kenny Chen, a Kaohsiung native in his 20s who is currently working in Taichung, told Ketagalan Media that he thought that Han was not a good fit for the position of mayor.

“Even family members who did really pay attention to politics started to care because they felt disappointed by Han,” he said.

Despite having promised large infrastructure improvements that included projects as grand as horse-racing tracks, Han, in the face of defeat following the recall vote, could only take credit for fixing city lights and “streets without potholes,” along with references to claimed improvements to Kaohsiung’s bilingual education.

What Might Happen Next?

The Taiwan Statebuilding Party, an ally of the DPP during the 2020 election and holder of one seat in the Legislative Yuan, was one of the primary drivers of the recall campaign. It is the only party with its headquarters in Kaohsiung and acted in the foreground as the DPP played a passive role during the recall campaign. As one of the self-styled “four gentlemen against Han,” Chang po-yang 張博洋 was a crucial member in the recall campaign and this may consolidate the party’s popularity in Kaohsiung.

On the other side of the political aisle, another series of power reshuffles in the KMT is sure to follow. Han, once wielding massive popularity and still having influence with signed up party members, could move on with the next step of his political career by running for the KMT chair position.

Local level politics will also see a reshuffle, with many members of his appointed administration set to lose their roles as a result of the recall.

Hours after results were announced, Apple Daily reported that Hsu Kun-yan 許昆源, speaker for Kaohsiung’s city council and KMT party member, died after falling from a building. At press time, police were still investigating his death.

As the follow up to Han’s recall campaign wraps up, Kaohsiung will be working to transition itself at a time that is typically uneventful during the election cycle. Political parties will likely rush to make a move to compete over the third largest municipality in Taiwan.

Han will officially vacate his post on June 12 when the CEC has completed its review of the recall vote. Han announced on June 9 that he will not seek to mount a legal challenge to the result. As such, an interim mayor will be appointed by the Executive Yuan before the by-election. That election must take place within three months, according to Taiwan’s election laws.

(Cover photo courtesy of WeCare)