Li Zhenxiu

Li Zhenxiu (traditional Chinese: 李貞秀; simplified Chinese: 李贞秀; pinyin: Lǐ Zhēnxiù; Wade–Giles: Li Chen-hsiu; born 15 April 1973) is a politician in Taiwan and a member of the Taiwan People's Party (TPP), who was nominated by her party as a member of the Legislative Yuan in February 2026. She is the first "mainland spouse" to be nominated as a legislator in Taiwan since the implementation of the Cross-Strait Act in 1992.

Lee was born on April 15, 1973, in Hengnan County, Hunan, China. In 1993, she relocated to Taiwan following her marriage to a Taiwanese national and subsequently settled there. She has five children. She earned an associate's degree in electrical engineering from Asia Eastern University of Science and Technology.^[1] She is currently enrolled in an in-service master's program in Public Affairs at Tunghai University. Li worked at technology companies including Unitech and Foxconn, before later starting her own business. She has served as a founding member of the OSCAR Net-Zero Emissions Resilient Supply Chain Alliance, chair of the ESG Sustainable Development Committee of the Hsinchu Innovation and Entrepreneurship Association and founder of Xingheli Co., Ltd.^[1][2]

According to Li's own account, she initially had little interest in politics. During Ko Wen-je's tenure as mayor of Taipei, she felt that Ko differed from traditional politicians and became a supporter. After Ko founded the Taiwan People's Party (TPP) in 2019, Li registered online as a party member in 2020. As she did not know any party members and could not provide a required recommender, she listed Foxconn founder Terry Gou as the recommender when completing the application. In 2021, after attending a TPP campaign event promoting the 2021 Taiwanese referendum in Hsinchu, she paid NT$10,000 to become a lifetime party member. In 2022, she was appointed campaign director for the TPP's Zhubei mayoral race, marking her formal involvement in electoral politics.^[1][2]

In the 2024 Taiwanese legislative election, Li participated in the TPP's at-large legislator selection process and was successfully nominated, ranking 15th on the party's list. Under the TPP legislative caucus's "two-year clause", she assumed office on 3 February 2026, becoming the first legislator of mainland China spouse background among Taiwan's new immigrant communities and while still holding Chinese citizenship.^[3][4] During her legislator-elect period, she served as an assistant in the office of Huang Kuo-chang, convener of the TPP legislative caucus.^[5][6]

Following the election of Li as a legislator, questions arose regarding her citizenship status and eligibility to assume office.^[7] Under the Constitution of the People's Republic of China and related Taiwan-affairs regulations, Taiwan residents are considered Chinese citizens. The administration of President Lai Ching-te holds the view that mainland Chinese spouses possess PRC citizenship and therefore fall under Article 20 of the Taiwanese nationality law, which concerns Republic of China nationals who also hold foreign nationality. According to this interpretation, Li would be required to renounce her PRC citizenship in order to assume office and to submit proof of loss of nationality within one year of taking office, otherwise the Legislative Yuan should dismiss her. The method of renunciation would depend on the laws of the relevant country.^[8] The law stipulates that the authority to dismiss a legislator rests with the Legislative Yuan. As such, the Executive Yuan and the Ministry of the Interior stated their legal position but do not possess the authority to invalidate Li's election or remove her from office.^[9] Li stated that she attempted to renounce her PRC citizenship by travelling to her hometown in China but that her application was rejected by Chinese authorities.^[10]