Yao Ching-ling (; born 23 November 1969) is a Taiwanese

political scientist Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and Power (social and political), power, and the analysis of political activities, political philosophy, political thought, polit ...

and politician who is currently serving as magistrate of

Taitung County Taitung () is the third largest county in Taiwan, located primarily on the island's southeastern coast and also including Green Island, Orchid Island and Lesser Orchid Island. The seat is located in Taitung City. Name While its name means "East ...

. A member of the

Kuomintang The Kuomintang (KMT) is a major political party in the Republic of China (Taiwan). It was the one party state, sole ruling party of the country Republic of China (1912-1949), during its rule from 1927 to 1949 in Mainland China until Retreat ...

, she was elected as a member of Taitung County Council in 2005 and became speaker in 2010.

Education

Yao graduated from

Fu Jen Catholic University Fu Jen Catholic University (FJU, FJCU or Fu Jen; or ) is a private education, private Catholic university in Xinzhuang District, Xinzhuang, New Taipei City, Taiwan. The university was founded in 1925 in Beijing at the request of Pope Pius XI and ...

with a bachelor's degree in Chinese literature and earned a master's degree in media literacy from

San Jose State University San José State University (San Jose State or SJSU) is a Public university, public research university in San Jose, California. Established in 1857, SJSU is the List of oldest schools in California, oldest public university on the West Coast of ...

. She then earned her Ph.D. from

National Taiwan Normal University National Taiwan Normal University (NTNU) is a National university, national comprehensive university in Taipei and New Taipei City, Taiwan. The university enrolls approximately 17,000 students each year. Approximately 1,600 students are Intern ...

political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and Power (social and political), power, and the analysis of political activities, political philosophy, political thought, polit ...

Political career

Yao was elected to the Taitung County Council after winning the

local election In many parts of the world, local elections take place to select office-holders in local government, such as mayors and councillors. Elections to positions within a city or town are often known as "municipal elections". Their form and conduct var ...

on 3 December 2005, making her the youngest councilor to be elected at the age of 36. In 2010, she was elected as the speaker of the county council. While serving on the county council, Yao explored bids for higher office, contesting Kuang Li-chen for the Taitung magistracy in 2009, and a seat on the

Legislative Yuan The Legislative Yuan () is the unicameral legislature of the Republic of China (Taiwan) located in Taipei. The Legislative Yuan is composed of 113 members, who are directly elected for four-year terms by people of the Taiwan Area through a ...

in 2012. In 2016, Yao was appointed a deputy secretary-general of the

, under chairwoman Hung Hsiu-chu.

2018 Taitung County magistrate election

Yao defeated

Liao Kuo-tung Liao Kuo-tung (; born 8 January 1955) is a Taiwanese people, Taiwanese Amis people, Amis politician and physician. Also known by the Amis language, Amis name Sufin Siluko, he represented the Lowland Aborigine Constituency in the Legislative Yuan ...

in a Kuomintang primary and subsequently received her party's nomination to contest the Taitung magistracy in 2018. She faced Democratic Progressive Party challenger Liu Chao-hao and three independent candidates, including former county commissioner Kuang Li-chen. Yao won the magisterial election held on 24 November 2018.

2025 trip to China

In January, Yao led a delegation to

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

and met with

Taiwan Affairs Office The Taiwan Affairs Office is an administrative agency under the State Council of the People's Republic of China (PRC). It is responsible for cross-strait relations and sets and implements guidelines and policies related to Taiwan, which is cl ...

head Song Tao, drawing criticism.

References

External links

* 1969 births Living people Magistrates of Taitung County National Taiwan Normal University alumni 21st-century Taiwanese women politicians 21st-century Taiwanese politicians San Jose State University alumni {{Taiwan-politician-stub