Taipei mayoral election: Chiang Wanan’s 2028 frontline battle, can Shen Boyang rely on the "ocean current" to break through?
Author, Jiang Yaoyu
Role, BBC Chinese special correspondent
Published 5 minutes ago
Reading time: 5 minutes
Taiwan's "nine-in-one" local elections will be held on November 28.
This election will set the stage for the rise and fall of power between the ruling Democratic Progressive Party and the opposition Kuomintang and People's Party. It is not only regarded as a "mid-term test" for President Lai Ching-te, but also a frontline battle for the 2028 presidential election.
The outside world is paying close attention to the elections in the six municipalities commonly known as the "Six Capitals". In the capital Taipei, the current mayor of the Kuomintang, Chiang Wanan, who is seeking re-election, is regarded as one of the popular candidates for the 2028 presidential election. Whether he fights well in this election is the key to his further ambition to win the central government.
Cai Jiahong, a researcher at National Chengchi University's Election Research Center, analyzed BBC Chinese: "It is pretty certain that Lai Ching-te of the Democratic Progressive Party will run for re-election in 2028. The focus is on the Kuomintang. Their situation is not very clear yet. There are many opinions on possible candidates including Jiang Wanan, Lu Xiuyan, and maybe Cheng Liwen. This also makes everyone pay more attention to the election in Taipei."
However, Shen Boyang, the DPP candidate and current legislator who was originally not optimistic, has vigorously changed his image since announcing his candidacy, and has gained momentum since September. His campaign team used the slogan "Ocean Current" to heat up the election, posing a challenge to Chiang Wanan, who already enjoyed the advantage of being in power. Chiang Wanan's team, which used to adopt a cold approach to the election campaign, also began to actively engage in offensive and defensive activities, making the Taipei election campaign intensified.
Who is Jiang Wanan?
Jiang Wanan, 47, is regarded as one of the popular candidates for the 2028 or even 2032 presidential election.
Jiang Wanan grew up in Taipei and graduated from the Law Department of National Chengchi University. He then went to the United States to obtain a doctorate in law from the University of Pennsylvania, and worked as a practicing lawyer in the United States until returning to Taiwan in 2013. After returning to Taiwan, Jiang Wanan devoted himself to helping Taiwan's new industries provide consultation on fundraising, mergers and acquisitions, and listings in Silicon Valley.
In 2015, he gave up his U.S. green card and ran as a political amateur in the 2016 legislative election and was successfully elected, officially entering politics. At that time, the Kuomintang suffered a setback due to the Sunflower Student Movement. Jiang Wanan brought a new atmosphere to the party. The following year, he was elected as a member of the Central Standing Committee of the Kuomintang by a high vote and became a political star within the party.
In the 2022 local election, he defeated his opponents Chen Shizhong, Huang Shanshan and others and was elected mayor of Taipei City. At the age of 43, he became the youngest mayor in history.
In terms of cross-strait positions, in 2019, when Chiang Wanan was serving as a legislator, he stated that he agreed with the "four musts" proposed by President Tsai Ing-wen, especially the need for the other side to face up to the fact that the Republic of China exists; but he could not accept Tsai Ing-wen's statement that "Taiwan has never accepted the 1992 Consensus." In the same year, the anti-extradition movement broke out in Hong Kong. He posted a message on Facebook to support Hong Kong demonstrators and said that "one country, two systems" has no room in Taiwan.
During his tenure as mayor, he promoted stable cross-strait exchanges. He went to Shanghai twice to participate in the Shanghai-Taipei Twin Cities Forum, and also received a delegation from the Shanghai Municipal Government in Taipei. He criticized the DPP government's stance of "revolting against China whenever it encounters China" and called for the resumption of cross-strait tourism and personnel exchanges as soon as possible.
In recent years, Jiang Wanan has emphasized on many occasions that the more tense cross-strait relations become, the more communication and exchange are needed. But he also avoided mentioning slogans with higher political connotations such as the "1992 Consensus" and "Two sides of the Taiwan Strait are one family."
At the municipal level, Chiang Wanan said on the third anniversary of his taking office that his most proud political achievements include the opening of the Taipei Arena, the development of the MRT project, and the coordination of law amendments that allowed the Taiwan headquarters of the American chip manufacturer Nvidia to successfully locate in Taipei. The latter will invest NT$40 billion and is expected to create more than 10,000 job opportunities.
In the 2026 county and city survey by "Tianxia Magazine", Taipei City won the "Happy City" championship, but Jiang Wanan's chief executive satisfaction ranked only fourth among the six cities. Food safety incidents, child abuse cases and rodent infestations that occurred during his tenure also attracted criticism from the DPP and opponents.
It is worth noting that when Chiang Wanan was a legislator in 2019, he voted in favor of the same-sex marriage bill and was one of the few Kuomintang legislators to publicly support marriage equality. After becoming mayor, he also publicly participated in the Taipei Rainbow Parade. On the eve of this election, Taipei City police raided a gay bar on October 3, triggering criticism from gender equality groups and hundreds of people protesting. Chiang Wanan's response as mayor attracted much attention.
Taipei City is generally considered the stronghold of the blue camp, and he also led his opponents by a wide margin in the early stages of this election. According to a TVBS polling center report in May, Chiang Wanan received 58% support, while Shen Boyang only had 30%. However, the latest September poll by the Trustees Association showed that the gap between the two has narrowed to 1.2%, heating up the Taipei election.
To his supporters, Jiang Wanan was an unconventional KMT politician. His fresh and moderate persona as mayor of the capital makes it easier for him to consolidate his base and attract middle voters in Taipei, a city where blue outweighs green. His opponents criticized Jiang Wanan as a "script memorizer" who lacked mass charisma in public speaking.
In terms of personal life, Jiang Wanan's life experience has always been discussed. In 2005, Jiang Wanan's father, former Secretary-General of the Presidential Office Jiang Xiaoyan, used various documents to prove that he was the illegitimate son of Chiang Ching-kuo, and changed his surname from "Zhang" to "Chiang". Jiang Wanan also changed his surname with his father.
Jiang Wanan once mentioned in his autobiography that although he had heard whispers since he was a child, he only learned about his relationship with the Jiang family from his father in high school, saying that there was an "unceasing blood relationship" between them. Jiang Youqing, the fourth generation of the Jiang family, publicly questioned that Jiang Wanan had never conducted a DNA test with them.
Jiang Wanan and his wife have three sons. Recently, his 15-year-old eldest son was admitted to the Taipei City Education Bureau's publicly funded exchange program in the United States, causing public opinion to question whether the mayor took advantage of his privileges and did not actively avoid benefits. Jiang Wanan explained to the public that he was not involved in the selection process of his children, but he also stated that he would not receive the NT$75,000 subsidy from the Education Bureau.
Who is Shen Boyang?
The 44-year-old Shen Boyang is currently one of the politicians with the most polarizing reactions in Taiwan’s political arena.
Green camp supporters praise his clear exposition and international outlook, believing that he has enhanced the defense awareness of Taiwanese society and is an iconic figure in "resisting China and protecting Taiwan"; pan-blue voters point out that he frequently blames the "Chinese Communist Party's united front" for domestic political offenses and defenses, and believes that the civil defense movement he promotes is selling anxiety and treats him as a radical.
Shen Boyang was born and raised in Taipei. He graduated from the Law Department of National Taiwan University. After being admitted to the Graduate School of Law, he worked in a cram school for many years under the stage name "Puma", specializing in teaching criminal law. He went to the United States to study in 2007 and received a master's degree in law from the University of Pennsylvania and a doctorate in criminology and legal sociology from the University of California, Irvine. In 2017, he gave up his teaching position in the United States and returned to Taiwan, where he taught at the Institute of Criminology at the National Taipei University, studying China's united front and threats to Taiwan.
In 2021, he founded the "Black Bear Academy" that advocates national defense, and has served as the chairman of the Taiwan Democracy Laboratory, which analyzes China's information warfare. He is a frequent guest at international seminars.
In 2024, Shen Boyang ranked second in the legislative election regardless of district, became a DPP legislator, and officially entered the political arena. The same year he became a legislator, Beijing labeled him a "Taiwan independence diehard" and imposed sanctions.
Shen Boyang's tough attitude towards mainland China has made him involved in many controversies.
He once said that Lu Pei must clearly renounce his Chinese nationality before joining politics, otherwise it may cause a national security crisis, which is an "emergency" that must be guarded against. The Kuomintang and its opponents claimed that it suppressed Lu Pei's participation in political power and caused Lu Pei to be discriminated against.
China's Taiwan Affairs Office once sanctioned the trading company of Shen Boyang's father, Shen Tucheng, saying he had business dealings with Chinese companies. Shen Boyang stated that the accusation was part of China's "cognitive warfare", saying that his father's company mainly trades in Central and South America, and China is only one of many sources of imports.
In the "big recall" in 2025, the Central Committee of the Democratic Progressive Party called for "vote for the recall, and the anti-communist force will be stronger." Shen Boyang is regarded as one of the core leaders of this movement, and the anti-recall camp criticized him for inciting social opposition. In the end, all 32 recall cases were rejected. Shen Boyang said that he would take responsibility, but said that the recall group was an independent assembly and should not be severely criticized for exercising civil rights.
At the end of October of the same year after the general recall, the Chongqing Municipal Public Security Bureau of China issued a wanted order for Shen Boyang on suspicion of "separatism." China's state-run media CCTV later broadcast a seven-minute documentary accusing Shen Boyang of spreading "hateful" ideas and that the "Black Bear Academy" he founded trained more than 3 million "Black Bear Warriors" in three years to help defend Taiwan. Shen Boyang responded that China has no right to exercise jurisdiction over Taiwan and he will never back down.
In the past, Shen Boyang was considered to have a "high hatred value" by opponents for his promotion of "anti-China and Taiwan support". Since he announced his candidacy for mayor of Taipei, he has vigorously changed his image. He first cut off his original iconic afro, and changed the focus of his discussion from national defense and cross-strait to social issues such as municipal governance. He actively went to the grassroots to make up for the shortcomings in local management. His argumentative ability has brought him popularity, and the outside world is concerned about whether he can "break out of the circle" and gain non-stratosphere supporters.
However, Shen Boyang, who is wanted by the other side of the Taiwan Strait, can never do without cross-strait issues. When recently asked about his views on the Twin Cities Forum, he said that if elected, he would re-evaluate the effectiveness of the Twin Cities Forum and advocated that Taipei should communicate with more international cities and should not be limited to cross-strait relations. He emphasized that as long as there were no political preconditions, he would not object to exchanges with the other side. The question was whether the other side would let him in.
