Beijing-friendly Han Kuo-yu elected as Taiwan’s legislative speaker
Kaohsiung’s populist former mayor, Han Kuo-yu, has been elected as Taiwan’s legislative speaker. The 66-year-old opposition Kuomintang (KMT) nominee won 54 votes, whilst the incumbent speaker, You Si-kun of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) received 51 votes on Thursday. The Taiwan People’s Party – the island’s third-largest – did not partake in the vote. A political outsider, Han became mayor of Kaohsiung in November 2018, before defeating powerful insiders to run as the KMT’s presidential candidate. But his unsuccessful bid, and promises to make citizens “filthy rich,” failed, le...