Who are the two protagonists in the battle for mayor of Taipei: Jiang Wanan and Shen Boyang?

The 2026 local elections in Taiwan will be held on November 28, also known as the "nine-in-one" election. About 19.65 million voters will vote to elect 22 municipalities, counties and cities, and a total of 9 categories of local public officials, including mayors, city councilors, public opinion representatives, village chiefs, etc.

This election is regarded as a mid-term review of the Lai Ching-te government and a precursor to the 2028 presidential election. The mayoral election in the capital Taipei has attracted the most attention. It will pit the current mayor of the Kuomintang, Chiang Wanan, against the candidate of the Democratic Progressive Party, Shen Boyang. This election, which was originally considered "almost no suspense," has changed as Shen Boyang's popularity and poll numbers have increased.

Who is Jiang Wanan?

Jiang Wanan is a political star of the younger generation of the Kuomintang and is regarded as a popular candidate for the future president of the blue camp.

The 47-year-old Jiang Wanan was born and raised in Taipei. He graduated from Jianguo Middle School. He holds a bachelor's degree from the Department of Foreign Affairs and the Department of Law at National Chengchi University, and obtained a Master of Laws (LL.M.) and a Doctor of Laws (J.D.) from the University of Pennsylvania in the United States. He was qualified to practice law in California in 2007 and practiced law in the United States until his family returned to Taiwan to settle in 2013.

In 2015, Jiang Wanan officially entered the political arena. He gave up his permanent residence in the United States and announced his participation in the legislative election the following year. He was eventually elected as the legislator for Taipei City's Zhongshan and Beisongshan constituencies on behalf of the Kuomintang. Chiang Wanan was re-elected as a legislator in 2020, but resigned two years later to run for mayor of Taipei. In the end, he won 42.29% of the vote, defeating Chen Shizhong of the Democratic Progressive Party (31.93%) and Huang Shanshan, who was not a party member at the time (25.14%), becoming the youngest mayor of Taipei in history.

At the beginning of his political career, Jiang Wanan attracted great attention as the "fourth generation of the Chiang family", but his life experience has always been whispered about. His father, former Taiwan Foreign Minister Zhang Xiaoyan, claimed that he was the son of Chiang Ching-kuo and Zhang Yaruo. He changed his surname to Chiang in 2005, and his children also changed their surnames after their father. However, the outside world has questioned the lack of strong evidence and public DNA test results for this blood relationship.

To his supporters, Jiang Wanan is young, handsome, gentle and elegant, with a distinguished academic background and family background. He and his wife have three children, and he often displays the image of a "good father" in the media. Critics question his reliance on the "Chiang family aura" in politics, his business image being greater than his actual governance, and his vague stance on issues.

During his tenure as mayor, he emphasized the completion of the opening of the Taipei Arena, the successful bid for Huida's overseas headquarters to be located in Taipei, and the student nutrition supplement policy of "fresh milk for all students". However, he was also criticized for the rodent problem, food safety concerns, and incidents of sexual violence and abuse of children that occurred during his term.

Regarding cross-Strait issues, Chiang Wanan once said that he agreed with “the 1992 Consensus in line with the Constitution of the Republic of China,” but opposed “one country, two systems.” He has publicly stated several times that he is “a Taiwanese and a citizen of the Republic of China.” During the anti-extradition movement in 2019, Chiang Wanan publicly supported Hong Kong student demonstrators; he advocated continued cross-strait exchanges and organized and participated in the "Twin Cities Forum" while serving as mayor of Taipei.

On some issues, his stance differed from the traditional or mainstream stance of the Kuomintang. For example, in 2019, the Legislative Yuan voted to approve same-sex marriage. Chiang Wanan was one of the few Kuomintang legislators to vote in favor. He also publicly participated in the Taipei Gay Parade. However, in early October this year, Taipei City police raided gay bars, causing controversy over improper law enforcement and discrimination. Jiang Wanan also publicly apologized for this.

When Chiang Wanan was a legislator, he also proposed the transformation of the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall into a "Taiwan Construction Memorial Hall." As a descendant of the Chiang family, he advocated "a higher vision and a more macro perspective" to view the contributions of Chiang Kai-shek and Chiang Ching-kuo to the Republic of China and Taiwan. At that time, some people in the green camp spoke positively of his willingness to take a stand, but others criticized his empty claims and avoidance of key controversies.

Who is Shen Boyang?

During this year's Taipei mayoral campaign, Shen Boyang relied on his personal charm, focused on policy discussions, actively responded to public opinion, and even accepted an exclusive interview with a pro-blue camp program to break through the "stratosphere". He received more and more attention and support, and was described by the media as an "ocean current" rise.

44-year-old Shen Boyang and Jiang Wanan have similar experiences, elite academic qualifications and background in the United States. He is regarded as an "atypical" DPP politician with a strong academic background but not much political experience.

Shen Boyang was born and raised in Taipei. He graduated from Jianguo High School and the Law Department of National Taiwan University. He was admitted as a lawyer after graduating from university. He holds a master's degree in law from the Institute of Law of National Taiwan University, a master's degree in law from the University of Pennsylvania, and a doctorate (PhD) in sociology of crime and law from the University of California, Irvine (UCI). After returning to Taiwan in 2017, he taught at the Institute of Criminology at Taipei University.

In addition to teaching, Shen Boyang founded the "Taiwan Democracy Laboratory" in 2019 to study fake news, information warfare and cognitive warfare; in 2021, he founded the "Black Bear Academy" to promote the defense resilience and civil defense education of the whole society. It was not until 2023 that he turned to politics and joined the Democratic Progressive Party. The following year, he became a member of the electorate's non-district legislator.

In May 2026, Shen Boyang accepted the call from the Democratic Progressive Party and announced his candidacy for Taipei mayor. He has mixed reviews among the blue and green camps. Supporters believe that he is knowledgeable and eloquent. In addition to academic research, he is also actively involved in civil organizations and has high mobility. Opponents criticize his tough political style, triggering social opposition, and lack of administrative experience.

Shen Boyang has a tough stance on China and has a clear image of "resisting China and protecting Taiwan." In the same year he was elected as a legislator, he was listed as a "Taiwan independence die-hard" by Beijing and was later wanted for "engaging in separatist criminal activities." During his tenure as a legislator, he mainly focused on issues such as national defense, national security, cognitive operations, and counter-infiltration. During the "general recall" in 2025, Shen Boyang was one of the core figures actively participating in the movement within the DPP.

Regarding the issue of mainland Chinese spouses (officially called "mainland spouses" in Taiwan, and more and more people refer to them as "Chinese spouses" in recent years), Shen Boyang's stance has repeatedly aroused polarized opinions. Supporters mostly believe that this is to protect national security; critics question that it is suspected of suppression and discrimination.

For example, China's "National Intelligence Law" stipulates that any organization and citizen should support, assist, and cooperate with China's intelligence work in accordance with the law. Shen Boyang said that if a Chinese official holds public office in Taiwan, it may bring national security concerns to Taiwan, so he advocates that they should give up their cross-strait nationality when participating in politics.

In addition, the "Yaya Case" occurred in Taiwan in March 2025. Internet celebrity "Yaya" (whose real name is Liu Zhenya) in Taiwan advocated "military unification" of Taiwan on social platforms, but the Taiwan government revoked her dependent residence permit and forcibly deported her from the country.

Shen Boyang posted on Facebook at the time: "There is a starting point for the freedom of speech of a spouse from an enemy country who obtains residence in Taiwan and that of ordinary Taiwanese citizens. I think it is wrong to directly apply the freedom of speech enjoyed by ordinary citizens to spouses of an enemy country. If you immigrate to the United States today and then publicly advocate a military attack on the United States, it should be unacceptable." He advocated that there should be stricter restrictions on "persons from hostile countries", focusing on the principle of proportionality.

However, Shen Boyang has publicly emphasized many times that Chinese spouses may also be threatened by China and need protection, and the focus is on risk management. In early October this year, during an exclusive interview with TVBS' "Shaokang Situation Room", he denied that he had listed Chinese spouses as high-risk groups for Chinese infiltration, and said that the highest risk groups were legislators.

In terms of cross-strait exchanges, Shen Boyang advocated the suspension of the "ineffective" Twin Cities Forum, and said that if elected as mayor of Taipei, he would instead hold an "Infinite City Forum" with cities from democratic countries to expand international exchanges. However, in an exclusive interview with "Shaokang War Room" in October, he said that if the Twin Cities Forum could include the "1992 Consensus", "One Country, Two Systems", and "Taiwan is part of China" without presupposing political conditions, and it had substantial benefits, he would be willing to participate.

Shen Boyang's father's trading company was reported by pro-Beijing Hong Kong media to have economic and trade relations with China, and was subsequently punished by Beijing. Lan Ying questioned that his father's business in China was inconsistent with Shen Boyang's idea of ​​"resisting China and protecting Taiwan." Shen Boyang clarified that his father was "a Taiwanese businessman from Ecuador, not a Taiwanese businessman from China." His business was mainly in Central and South America, and China was only one of the purchasing countries.