TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Taipei legislative candidate Enoch Wu (吳怡農) announced that he recently wed his long-time girlfriend, and he formally registered their union in Taipei, leading the media to question his continued appeal to female voters.
In 2020, Wu lost what local media called "the duel of the two hunks" (雙帥對決) with Kuomintang (KMT) candidate Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) over Taipei City's No. 3 District. However, Wu is running again for the DPP's candidate for the Taipei legislative by-election after Chiang vacated the post to become Taipei City Mayor.
Since his previous bid for the Legislative Yuan, Wu has gained a large following of many female fans, who call themselves "peasant women," a play on words based on Wu's middle name Nong (農), which means farm or peasant. His concession post on Facebook gained 178,000 likes and his public appearances in which he thanked supporters drew many "peasant women" and "farmers" (male Wu fans), alike.
However, Wu has recently been spotted sporting a wedding band on his left ring finger, prompting speculation that he was recently married. During a press conference on Sunday (Dec. 4), Wu confirmed that he has been married for a few months and registered the marriage at the Zhongshang Administration Center in October.
Wu was cited by Liberty Times as saying that there was nothing to hide, but since the country is in the midst of a pandemic and elections, he did not feel it necessary to make any public announcements about the matter. He pointed out that the wedding banquet has not yet been held and that his wife is from outside the political circle and therefore hopes to maintain her own personal private life and space.
Nevertheless, he pledged that in the future, there will be opportunities for him to introduce her to the public. He said that his wife fully supports his decision to run in the by-election, and he said that he was very lucky to have a wife who provides so much support.
When asked if he is concerned that he will lose votes from the "peasant women," Wu smiled and said that "I don't believe that they support me because of this (looks, marital status). If that is the case, I will need to reflect on my actions for not doing well enough."
