Foxconn Founder Terry Gou Declares Candidacy for Taiwan Presidency

The wealthy creator of significant Apple Inc. supplier Foxconn, Terry Gou, announced on Monday that he would run as an independent in the 2024 elections for president of Taiwan.

Gou left his role as head of Foxconn in 2019 and ran for president the same year, but he later withdrew after failing to secure the candidacy of Taiwan’s biggest opposition party, the Kuomintang KMT, which has always supported tight ties with China.

Earlier this year, he put up a second effort to be the KMT’s nominee for the January presidential election, but the party ended up going with Hou Yu-ih, the mayor of New Taipei City.

Gou has been visiting Taiwan over the past two weeks and organizing events that resembled campaign rallies, fueling rumors that he intends to run as an independent.

Elections laws stipulate that Gou must collect over 300,000 voter signatures by November 2 in order to be eligible to run as an independent. By November 14, the Central Election Commission will have examined the signatures and announced the results.

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Race for Taiwan’s Presidency

William Lai, vice president of Taiwan and the Democratic Progressive Party’s (DPP) presidential candidate, is currently in the lead in the polls and considered the favorite to win.

Ko Wen-je, a former mayor of Taipei and member of the tiny Taiwan People’s Party, is now polling second, with Hou in a distant third place.

Gou’s main message throughout his fictitious campaign events has been that the DPP must be removed from government in order to prevent conflict with China, which claims Taiwan as its own territory.

Lai has drawn special ire from China because of remarks he has made in the past about being a “worker” for Taiwan independence, which Beijing considers unacceptable.

Despite the fact that the DPP advocates for Taiwan’s independence from China, the government it leads has frequently offered discussions with China, but these offers have been turned down.

The year leading up to the election is marked by heightened hostilities between Taipei and Beijing as Beijing conducts routine military drills close to the island to bolster its claims to sovereignty.

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Source: Reuters