美聯社：國民黨選出民粹主義親中候選人

A populist mayor who favours closer ties with Beijing was announced as the presidential candidate for Taiwan's opposition on Monday as it looks to unseat President Tsai Ing-wen in upcoming elections.

Han Kuo-yu won the primary for the opposition Kuomintang party, comfortably seeing off a challenge from Taiwan's richest man, billionaire Foxconn founder Terry Gou.

His victory sets up an unpredictable clash as Taiwan goes to the polls in January in a contest that will be dominated by relations with China.

Han, 62, has had a meteoric rise in the last two years, journeying from relative obscurity to becoming his party's presidential candidate in a phenomenon that has been dubbed the "Han tide".

Some have likened him to US President Donald Trump and other populist leaders who hail from outside establishment circles and command a fervent voter base buoyed by lofty promises of resurrecting their fortunes.

Han won 45 percent of votes cast in the KMT's primary -- which polls members of the public by telephone -- compared with Gou's 28 percent, a major setback for a man who made his fortune assembling iPhones and other key electronic devices in huge factories on the Chinese mainland.

Han was a relative unknown until he seized the Kaohsiung mayoralty in local elections last year in a contest few thought he would win given the southern city had long been a heartland for Tsai's ruling Democratic Progressive Party.

He has been able to muster huge, enthusiastic crowds during his presidential bid, where he has vowed to restore warm ties with Beijing and kickstart the economy.

Relations with Beijing have soured since Tsai came to power three years ago because she and her party refuse to recognise the idea that Taiwan is part of "one China".

Since her election Beijing has cut official communications, ramped up military exercises, poached diplomatic allies and ratcheted up economic pressure on the island.

Taiwan has been a de facto sovereign nation since the end of a civil war in 1949 but China still views it as its own territory and has vowed to seize it, by force if necessary.

Tsai has described the 2020 presidential election as a "fight for freedom and democracy", setting herself up as someone who can defend Taiwan from an increasingly assertive Beijing.

Supporters see Han as a plain-talking maverick and political outsider who has shaken up the staid politics of the KMT -- but detractors are unnerved by his efforts promoting warmer China ties.

一位贊成與北京建立更密切關係的民粹主義市長周一宣布成為台灣反對派的總統候選人，因為它希望在即將舉行的選舉中取代蔡英文總統。

韓國佑贏得了反對黨國民黨的初選，輕鬆地從台灣首富，富豪富士康創始人郭台銘那裡挑戰。

他的勝利引發了一場不可預測的衝突，因為台灣將於1月參加一場由與中國關係主導的競選中進行民意調查。

62歲的漢族在過去兩年中迅速崛起，從相對默默無聞到成為他所在黨派的總統候選人，這種現像被稱為“漢潮”。

有些人把他比作美國總統唐納德特朗普和其他民粹主義領導人，他們來自外部企業界，並指揮一個熱情的選民基礎，得到了恢復財富的崇高承諾。

漢族在國民黨的初選中獲得了45％的選票 - 通過電話對公眾進行了民意調查 - 與郭某的28％相比，這是一個人在大型工廠組裝iPhone和其他關鍵電子設備的重大挫折。中國大陸。

去年在地方選舉中抓住高雄市長的一場比賽中，漢族是一個相對不為人知的人，因為南方城市長期以來一直是蔡的統治民主進步黨的心臟地帶。

在總統競選期間，他已經能夠召集龐大，熱情的人群，在那裡他發誓要恢復與北京的溫暖關係，並啟動經濟發展。

自三年前蔡上台執政以來，與北京的關係一直在惡化，因為她和她的政黨拒絕承認台灣是“一個中國”的一部分。

自她當選以來，北京已經削減了官方通訊，加強了軍事演習，挖走了外交盟友，加劇了對台灣的經濟壓力。

自1949年內戰結束以來，台灣一直是事實上的主權國家，但中國仍將其視為自己的領土，並誓言必要時以武力奪取它。

Tsai將2020年的總統大選描述為“爭取自由和民主的鬥爭”，使自己成為能夠在日益自信的北京捍衛台灣的人。

支持者認為漢族是一個平凡的特立獨行者和政治局外人，他們動搖了國民黨的沉寂政治 - 但批評者對他促進更溫暖的中國關係的努力感到不安。

國民黨今日公布黨內總統提名初選，高雄市長韓國瑜擊敗其他對手贏得初選，引起外國媒體關注報導。美聯社在報導中指出，台灣主要反對政黨選出民粹主義的親中市長擔任2020總統候選人。 

美聯社在報導中第一段形容韓國瑜是「民粹主義者、親中市長」（populist, pro-China mayor），而他將代表國民黨於明年1月大選迎戰現任總統蔡英文。文中同時指出，韓國瑜在初選中擊敗鴻海集團前董事長郭台銘。 

美聯社在文中介紹韓國瑜，說他去年11月因主打拚經濟獲選為高雄市長。今年3月，他和中國4座城市簽約賣了價值52億台幣的農產品。 

路透則在報導中表示，台灣南部港都市長韓國瑜贏得台灣反對黨初選，直接挑戰蔡英文總統的連任之路。文中介紹韓國瑜去年11月高雄市長選舉後人氣大漲，「這位親中市長因今年初和多位中國資深官員見面而引發爭議，包括香港中聯辦主任王志民」。 

報導中還說，韓國瑜曾說過兩岸同屬一個中國，此說法也是北京最重視的原則，而韓國瑜也曾形容「台獨比梅毒還可怕」。（Han has said both sides are part of "one China", a cherished principle for Beijing, and has previously described Taiwan independence as being "more scary" than syphilis.）

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