After stepping down, People First Party Chairman and former legislator Huang Kuo-chang has been actively campaigning for the 2026 New Taipei mayoral election. Recently, his acceptance of “donations” (via the online platform “super chat” or “donate” during a YouTube livestream) has sparked controversy over the legality of political contributions. Reports indicate that Huang received around NT$300,000 in donations over two days of livestreaming, drawing public attention. On Feb. 5, Interior Minister Liu Shih-fang stated that such “donations” do not qualify as official, legal political contributions for future candidates. The Interior Ministry has held multiple meetings with the Control Yuan on this matter and will submit it to the Executive Yuan for review, with future reference for the Legislative Yuan.
‘Super chat’ flagged as non-legal political contributions
Since stepping down as legislator, Huang Kuo-chang has held regular livestreams every Monday, interacting with netizens while also raising funds for his New Taipei mayoral campaign. His YouTube channel reportedly re-enabled the “super chat” function, through which he received nearly NT$300,000 over two days. Interior Minister Liu pointed out that “super chat” funds, transmitted via digital platforms, differ from traditional political donations in terms of reporting and oversight, and therefore do not qualify as official legal political contributions under current law.
Liu added that because such online financial flows are difficult to trace, monitor, and audit, any future regulation of this type of income would require amendments to the law to clearly define relevant rules. He noted that the Interior Ministry has held multiple discussions with the Control Yuan, and the matter is currently being sent to the Executive Yuan for review before eventual submission to the Legislative Yuan.
Continued controversy over legislator Li Chen-hsiu’s nationality
In addition, regarding the nationality dispute of People First Party legislator Li Chen-hsiu, an overseas spouse representative, Liu instructed the Interior Ministry not to provide documents classified as personal or confidential. The Mainland Affairs Council also stated that requests from Li for information will be handled under the strictest conditions.
Since January, the Interior Ministry has issued multiple official letters requesting the Legislative Yuan investigate Li’s status and handle it according to law, but no response has been received. The letters noted that Li Chen-hsiu, a Party-list legislator of the 11th Legislative Yuan for the People First Party, holds both Taiwanese and PRC citizenship, and did not renounce PRC citizenship prior to taking office, clearly violating Article 20 of the Nationality Act. Legislators holding dual nationality involve conflicts of national loyalty and national security concerns. The letters urged the Legislative Yuan’s leadership to promptly investigate, and if violations are confirmed, Li should be immediately removed from office.
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Regarding the “super chat” controversy, Huang Kuo-chang, after holding a press conference on urban renewal policies, stated that under current regulations, he is neither a sitting public official nor an officially declared candidate, so accepting donations via livestream is not illegal. He criticized parts of the ruling party for applying a double standard, noting that if other political figures received donations similarly, they were not questioned, implying political maneuvering and attacks. Huang emphasized that he always values legal compliance but also criticized the government’s inconsistent handling of this issue.
Currently, the debate over whether online livestream donations like “super chat” should fall under political contribution regulations continues in both political and media circles. Whether this will prompt legal amendments to explicitly regulate this new form of digital sponsorship remains to be seen, pending further discussion and decisions by the legislature.
