China Power | Politics | East Asia

TPP Founder Ko Wen-je Gets 17 Years in Prison

Ko’s corruption scandal has roiled the third largest party in Taiwan’s legislature. 

TPP founder Ko Wen-je (right) attends a forum in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, on Mar. 7, 2026. On Mar. 26, he was sentenced to 17 years in prison.

Former Taipei mayor Ko Wen-je has been sentenced to 17 years in jail by the Taipei District Court. Ko will also be deprived of civil rights for six years.

Ko is the founder of the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP), which at present is the third largest party in the Taiwanese legislature. Ko ran as the party’s presidential candidate in the 2024 elections, after a failed bid by the party to form a joint ticket with the Kuomintang (KMT). Indeed, until facing corruption charges, Ko continued to be a presidential hopeful, and it was expected that he would run again in 2028. 

Now, that possibility has been thrown into question. Taiwanese law stipulates that individuals who have been sentenced to more than 10 years in jail are forbidden from running for president or vice president. This is true even if the appeals process is underway. As such, even if Ko can and does appeal the ruling, it appears that the TPP founder will be prevented from running in the 2028 elections. 

Prosecutors charged Ko with receiving 2.1 million Taiwanese dollars in bribes from the Core Pacific Group. In return, Ko’s administration approved an illegal expansion of the floor area of the Core Pacific City Mall, giving the mall more real estate. The floor area ratio of the Core Pacific City Mall was expanded from 392 percent to 840 percent, allowing for an extra 3,300 square meters in space – amounting to more than NT$40 billion in value. 

The charges against Ko also touched upon other financial irregularities that have attracted scrutiny in past years. For example, alone of all major parties in Taiwan, the TPP declared zero presidential campaign expenditures for the 2024 election. By contrast, the KMT reported NT$147 million in expenditures which included NT$23.2 million in campaign expenditures, while the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) declared NT$142 million in expenditures (NT$62.4 million in campaign expenses). Attracting still more scrutiny, after a fundraising event for his 2024 campaign, Ko apparently used the proceeds to purchase a new personal office, rather than on his campaign. 

Other individuals involved in the case were also handed lengthy jail sentences. Core Pacific Group chair Sheen Ching-jing was sentenced to 10 years in jail, and Taipei city councilor Angela Ying of the KMT who was sentenced to 15-and-a-half years. Ying was accused of acting as a go-between for Sheen and Ko. Former Taipei deputy mayor Peng Chen-sheng, Ko’s office director Lee Wen-tsung, Lee Wen-chuan (the chair of Ko-linked PR firm Muko), and Ko’s accountant Tuanmu Cheng also face jail time.  

Ko’s secretary, Hsu Chih-yu, nicknamed “Orange,” fled to Japan and is currently considered a fugitive. Earlier this month, Ko applied to visit Japan for his son’s Ph.D. graduation, but permission to travel was denied due to the possibility that he would flee or seek to meet with Hsu. 

Before Ko’s sentence, he spent around one year in pretrial detention. Ko was taken into custody in September 2024 and released in September 2025, (not including some brief periods in which he was granted bail, then had bail revoked). Prosecutors defended Ko’s detention over the possibility that he would seek to destroy evidence. 

A USB drive seized from Ko that had a record of his transactions became a key source of evidence, as did unusually large deposits at ATMs made by Ko’s wife, Peggy Chen. 

TPP politicians and supporters, have insisted on Ko’s innocence. Instead, the party has framed the charges against Ko as a form of political persecution by the DPP. Ko himself has also hit out at the Lai administration, claiming that the charges against him are proof of the administration’s manipulation of the judiciary. 

If Ko appeals, he may still avoid jail time. While Hsinchu mayor Ann Kao of the TPP previously faced seven years and four months in jail over embezzling subsidies meant to pay for legislative assistants, she was cleared of charges on appeal. 

There will be many questions going forward for the TPP, which was originally formed in order to back a presidential run by Ko. With Ko facing a lengthy jail stint, the acting party chair of the TPP will continue to be Huang Kuo-chang. Huang has consistently framed himself as following Ko’s will and acting at his behest, even as Huang is thought to be among those who gains most from the prospect of Ko returning to jail. If Ko is in prison, it will allow Huang to maintain his leadership of the party.  

It is probable that the TPP will continue to advocate for Ko’s release. Huang could also seek to amend the laws that currently prevent Ko from running as a presidential candidate. 

This would not be the only time that the TPP has proposed wide-ranging changes to Taiwan’s legal system to benefit Ko. During Ko’s period in pretrial detention, the TPP proposed legal changes that would ban pretrial detention over collusion. At the time, the DPP criticized the move as dangerous, and apparently solely intended to benefit Ko. In addition, in its quest to drum up publicity around Ko, the TPP at one point advocated livestreaming trials publicly, a proposal that met with opposition from lawyers’ organizations.

The TPP would only be able to make such changes to current laws with the support of the KMT. Even if, on past occasions, Huang has been able to secure verbal expressions of support from the KMT leadership, it is a question to what extent the KMT wishes to back the TPP. The KMT may simply decide that it does not wish to share political power with the smaller party, or that the TPP may be a liability – particularly after the two parties failed to form a political alliance in 2024, resulting in an embarrassing televised argument between the candidates and party chairs, and ultimately splitting the vote in a DPP victory. 

Although the two parties have now agreed on a joint platform, Huang is set to square off against KMT candidate Lee Shu-chuan for the New Taipei mayorship, potentially repeating history. 

There are further questions about the TPP’s identity as distinct from the KMT, given that the TPP has closely aligned with the KMT on controversial matters such as cutting the government budget, blocking military spending, and freezing the Constitutional Court. With China-born Li Zhen-xiu of the TPP becoming the first “mainland spouse” to become a legislator, the TPP has also taken up political advocacy for Chinese spouses of Taiwanese, another traditional issue of the KMT. 

Without its central figure, there will continue to be questions about the long-term viability of the TPP, unless the party comes to truly revolve around Huang. There may be something of a power vacuum in the party going forward. Major figures of the TPP from Ko’s chairmanship, such as Huang Shan-shan or Tsai Bi-ru, largely seem to have become marginalized under Huang Kuo-chang. In another unusual spat, Li Zhen-xiu claimed on a livestream earlier this week to have heard of Hsinchu mayor Ann Kao receiving NT$7 million from Ko, before later backtracking on her comments. 

In the short term, it is probable that the TPP will see a new wave of activity, as the party seeks to rally the public in calls for Ko’s release. It is to be seen how the TPP next seeks to take the battle to the DPP when it comes to Ko. 

Get to the bottom of the story

Subscribe today and join thousands of diplomats, analysts, policy professionals and business readers who rely on The Diplomat for expert Asia-Pacific coverage.

Get unlimited access to in-depth analysis you won't find anywhere else, from South China Sea tensions to ASEAN diplomacy to India-Pakistan relations. More than 5,000 articles a year.

Unlimited articles and expert analysis

Weekly newsletter with exclusive insights

16-year archive of diplomatic coverage

Ad-free reading on all devices

Support independent journalism

Already have an account? Log in.

Former Taipei mayor Ko Wen-je has been sentenced to 17 years in jail by the Taipei District Court. Ko will also be deprived of civil rights for six years.

Ko is the founder of the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP), which at present is the third largest party in the Taiwanese legislature. Ko ran as the party’s presidential candidate in the 2024 elections, after a failed bid by the party to form a joint ticket with the Kuomintang (KMT). Indeed, until facing corruption charges, Ko continued to be a presidential hopeful, and it was expected that he would run again in 2028. 

Now, that possibility has been thrown into question. Taiwanese law stipulates that individuals who have been sentenced to more than 10 years in jail are forbidden from running for president or vice president. This is true even if the appeals process is underway. As such, even if Ko can and does appeal the ruling, it appears that the TPP founder will be prevented from running in the 2028 elections. 

Prosecutors charged Ko with receiving 2.1 million Taiwanese dollars in bribes from the Core Pacific Group. In return, Ko’s administration approved an illegal expansion of the floor area of the Core Pacific City Mall, giving the mall more real estate. The floor area ratio of the Core Pacific City Mall was expanded from 392 percent to 840 percent, allowing for an extra 3,300 square meters in space – amounting to more than NT$40 billion in value. 

The charges against Ko also touched upon other financial irregularities that have attracted scrutiny in past years. For example, alone of all major parties in Taiwan, the TPP declared zero presidential campaign expenditures for the 2024 election. By contrast, the KMT reported NT$147 million in expenditures which included NT$23.2 million in campaign expenditures, while the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) declared NT$142 million in expenditures (NT$62.4 million in campaign expenses). Attracting still more scrutiny, after a fundraising event for his 2024 campaign, Ko apparently used the proceeds to purchase a new personal office, rather than on his campaign. 

Other individuals involved in the case were also handed lengthy jail sentences. Core Pacific Group chair Sheen Ching-jing was sentenced to 10 years in jail, and Taipei city councilor Angela Ying of the KMT who was sentenced to 15-and-a-half years. Ying was accused of acting as a go-between for Sheen and Ko. Former Taipei deputy mayor Peng Chen-sheng, Ko’s office director Lee Wen-tsung, Lee Wen-chuan (the chair of Ko-linked PR firm Muko), and Ko’s accountant Tuanmu Cheng also face jail time.  

Ko’s secretary, Hsu Chih-yu, nicknamed “Orange,” fled to Japan and is currently considered a fugitive. Earlier this month, Ko applied to visit Japan for his son’s Ph.D. graduation, but permission to travel was denied due to the possibility that he would flee or seek to meet with Hsu. 

Before Ko’s sentence, he spent around one year in pretrial detention. Ko was taken into custody in September 2024 and released in September 2025, (not including some brief periods in which he was granted bail, then had bail revoked). Prosecutors defended Ko’s detention over the possibility that he would seek to destroy evidence. 

A USB drive seized from Ko that had a record of his transactions became a key source of evidence, as did unusually large deposits at ATMs made by Ko’s wife, Peggy Chen. 

TPP politicians and supporters, have insisted on Ko’s innocence. Instead, the party has framed the charges against Ko as a form of political persecution by the DPP. Ko himself has also hit out at the Lai administration, claiming that the charges against him are proof of the administration’s manipulation of the judiciary. 

If Ko appeals, he may still avoid jail time. While Hsinchu mayor Ann Kao of the TPP previously faced seven years and four months in jail over embezzling subsidies meant to pay for legislative assistants, she was cleared of charges on appeal. 

There will be many questions going forward for the TPP, which was originally formed in order to back a presidential run by Ko. With Ko facing a lengthy jail stint, the acting party chair of the TPP will continue to be Huang Kuo-chang. Huang has consistently framed himself as following Ko’s will and acting at his behest, even as Huang is thought to be among those who gains most from the prospect of Ko returning to jail. If Ko is in prison, it will allow Huang to maintain his leadership of the party.  

It is probable that the TPP will continue to advocate for Ko’s release. Huang could also seek to amend the laws that currently prevent Ko from running as a presidential candidate. 

This would not be the only time that the TPP has proposed wide-ranging changes to Taiwan’s legal system to benefit Ko. During Ko’s period in pretrial detention, the TPP proposed legal changes that would ban pretrial detention over collusion. At the time, the DPP criticized the move as dangerous, and apparently solely intended to benefit Ko. In addition, in its quest to drum up publicity around Ko, the TPP at one point advocated livestreaming trials publicly, a proposal that met with opposition from lawyers’ organizations.

The TPP would only be able to make such changes to current laws with the support of the KMT. Even if, on past occasions, Huang has been able to secure verbal expressions of support from the KMT leadership, it is a question to what extent the KMT wishes to back the TPP. The KMT may simply decide that it does not wish to share political power with the smaller party, or that the TPP may be a liability – particularly after the two parties failed to form a political alliance in 2024, resulting in an embarrassing televised argument between the candidates and party chairs, and ultimately splitting the vote in a DPP victory. 

Although the two parties have now agreed on a joint platform, Huang is set to square off against KMT candidate Lee Shu-chuan for the New Taipei mayorship, potentially repeating history. 

There are further questions about the TPP’s identity as distinct from the KMT, given that the TPP has closely aligned with the KMT on controversial matters such as cutting the government budget, blocking military spending, and freezing the Constitutional Court. With China-born Li Zhen-xiu of the TPP becoming the first “mainland spouse” to become a legislator, the TPP has also taken up political advocacy for Chinese spouses of Taiwanese, another traditional issue of the KMT. 

Without its central figure, there will continue to be questions about the long-term viability of the TPP, unless the party comes to truly revolve around Huang. There may be something of a power vacuum in the party going forward. Major figures of the TPP from Ko’s chairmanship, such as Huang Shan-shan or Tsai Bi-ru, largely seem to have become marginalized under Huang Kuo-chang. In another unusual spat, Li Zhen-xiu claimed on a livestream earlier this week to have heard of Hsinchu mayor Ann Kao receiving NT$7 million from Ko, before later backtracking on her comments. 

In the short term, it is probable that the TPP will see a new wave of activity, as the party seeks to rally the public in calls for Ko’s release. It is to be seen how the TPP next seeks to take the battle to the DPP when it comes to Ko. 

Brian Hioe is one of the founding editors of New Bloom, as well as a freelance journalist and translator.

Taiwan People's Party (TPP)

© The Diplomat