Claire Wang returns as New Power Party chairwoman

Taipei, Feb. 26 (CNA) Former lawmaker Claire Wang (王婉諭) was elected Monday as chairwoman of the New Power Party (NPP), weeks after resigning from the position following the party's poor showing in Taiwan's Jan. 13 elections.

Wang's return was announced at a press conference following the first meeting of the party's new decision making committee, whose nine members were elected on Feb. 18 by party members, and selected Wang as chairwoman.

The party leadership election came after the NPP crashed out of the Legislature in Taiwan's Jan. 13 elections, winning only 2.57 percent of votes on the party ballot for at-large legislator seats and none of the district-based seats it was contesting.

Wang also lost her seat in the Legislature, after falling short in a bid to unseat Kuomintang incumbent Lin Szu-ming (林思銘) in Hsinchu County's second district.

Speaking at the press briefing Monday, Wang said the NPP's absence from the Legislature would leave many important voices unrepresented, adding that the party had to work to win back the public's trust.

Over the next three to six months, she said, she planned to focus on three main goals, starting with conducting an analysis of why the party "failed" in the election and drafting plans to make improvements.

Wang said she also planned to push internal reforms to return the NPP to its founding values of transparency, openness and public participation, and to "reposition" the party in response to the demands of Taiwanese society.

Wang previously served as NPP chair from February 2023 to January, and as a member of the Legislative Yuan from 2020-2024.