Ko Wen-je

Ko Wen-je
柯文哲
Ko Wen-je in 2014
23rd Mayor of Taipei
Incumbent
Assumed office 25 December 2014
Deputy	Teng Chia-chi, Charles Lin, Chou Li-fang, Chen Chin-jun
Preceded by	Hau Lung-pin
Personal details
Born	(1959-08-06) 6 August 1959 (age 57) Hsinchu City, Taiwan
Nationality	Taiwan
Political party	Independent
Spouse(s)	Chen Pei-chi
Children	3
Alma mater	National Taiwan University
Ko Wen-je Traditional Chinese 柯文哲 Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Kē Wénzhé Southern Min Hokkien POJ Koa Bûn-tiat

Ko Wen-je (Chinese: 柯文哲; pinyin: Kē Wénzhé; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: Koa Bûn-tiat; born 6 August 1959 in Hsinchu City, Taiwan) is a Taiwanese physician and politician. Ko has served as mayor of Taipei, since 2014. Before becoming the mayor, he was a doctor at the National Taiwan University Hospital. He was also a professor at National Taiwan University College of Medicine and specializes in trauma, intensive care, organ transplant, extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO), and artificial organs among others. Due to his profession, he has been nicknamed Ko P or KP (which stands for Professor Ko, and is how he is customarily referred to within National Taiwan University). Ko was responsible for standardising organ transplant procedures in Taiwan, and was the first physician to bring ECMO to Taiwan. Apart from his practice, Ko is known for his numerous media appearances and interviews as a social and political commentator.

In 2014 Taipei Mayoral Election, Ko ran as an independent candidate. He beat Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) candidate Pasuya Yao in the unofficial primary, gaining support from the DPP and Taiwan Solidarity Union (TSU). Ko won the election with 853,983 votes to become the first doctoral mayor of the city since the introduction of direct election of the office.

Ko Wen-je grew up in a modest household. As the eldest son, his father had aspirations for him to become a doctor. After graduating from National Hsinchu Senior High School, he was accepted into the Medical School at NTU.