TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Most of the Kuomintang (KMT) legislative caucus will not attend President-elect Lai Ching-te’s (賴清德) inauguration on Monday (May 20).
Not only will KMT lawmakers miss the inauguration, but so will KMT municipal leaders such as New Taipei Mayor Hou Yu-ih (侯友宜). Hou’s absence is understandable according to political commentator Huang Yang-ming (黃揚明), who said on Facebook that politicians who lose presidential elections do not typically attend presidential inaugurations, per UDN.
Huang said Ko Wen-je's (柯文哲) rumored attendance will make him only the second politician who failed in a presidential bid to attend an inauguration following James Soong (宋楚瑜). Huang said municipal leaders are given more freedom in attending presidential inaugurations.
Looking back at prior inaugurations, Huang said that when Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) took the oath in 2016 and 2020, the only absences amongst the six major municipality leaders were individuals defeated by Tsai in presidential elections, namely, Eric Chu (朱立倫) and Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜).
Huang said that when the KMT rose to power with Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) inauguration in 2008 and 2012, neither of the DPP’s presidential candidates, Frank Hsieh (謝長廷) nor Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文), attended the event.
As for which KMT politicians will attend the inauguration, the list currently includes Taichung Mayor Lu Shiow-yen (盧秀燕) and Legislative Deputy Speaker Johnny Chiang (江啟臣), who announced he will break with the KMT legislative caucus decision to skip the inauguration. Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) previously said he would not attend, but said on Monday (May 13) he may go.
