Ker Chien-ming MLY
柯建銘
Ker in 2020
Member of the Legislative Yuan
Incumbent
Assumed office 1 February 2020
Constituency	Proportional Representation №8
In office 1 February 2016 – 1 February 2020
Preceded by	Lu Hsueh-chang
Succeeded by	Cheng Cheng-chien
Constituency	Hsinchu City
In office 1 February 2008 – 1 February 2016
Constituency	Proportional Representation №2
In office 1 February 1993 – 1 February 2008
Preceded by	Hsu Wu-sheng
Succeeded by	Lu Hsueh-chang
Constituency	Hsinchu's 1st district
Preceded by	Lai Shyh-bao
Succeeded by	Fu Kun-chi
Acting Chairman of the Democratic Progressive Party
In office 11 March 2011 – 27 April 2011
Preceded by	Tsai Ing-wen
Succeeded by	Tsai Ing-wen
In office 11 December 2004 – 15 January 2005
Preceded by	Chen Shui-bian
Succeeded by	Su Tseng-chang
Personal details
Born	(1951-09-08) 8 September 1951 (age 74) Hsinchu, Taiwan
Party	Democratic Progressive Party
Education	Chung Shan Medical University (MB) Tamkang University (MS) National Chiao Tung University (MBA)
Chinese name
Traditional Chinese	柯建銘
Simplified Chinese	柯建铭
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Kē Jiànmíng Wade–Giles Kō Chièn-míng Southern Min Hokkien POJ Kho Kiàn-bêng

Ker Chien-ming (Chinese: 柯建銘; pinyin: Kē Jiànmíng; Wade–Giles: Ke¹ Chien⁴-ming²; born 8 September 1951) is a Taiwanese politician and former dentist who serves as minority leader in the Legislative Yuan. From 2016 to February 2024, he was the majority leader, after the Democratic Progressive Party won a majority of seats in the Legislative Yuan for the first time.

Early life and education

Ker was born in Hsinchu, Taiwan, on September 8, 1951.^[1] He has two brothers.^[2] His father, Ker Tzu-yu (柯子余; 1917–2010), was a prominent orator in the city.^[3] Tzu-yu was also the founder of an incense shop.^[2]

As a child, Ker contracted and recovered from tuberculosis in elementary school; the illness inspired him to attend medical school.^[4] He graduated from National Hsinchu Senior High School in 1960.^[5] As a high school student, he registered as a member of the Kuomintang (KMT) at the request of a military instructor.^[6]

After high school, Ker attended medical school at Chung Shan Medical University and graduated with a degree in dental science.^[7] He then studied abroad in the United States and Japan, obtained his dental license in the U.S., and opened his own dental practice in Hsinchu in 1981.^[4] He was an active dentist from 1976 until 1992, during which period he became the president of a Hsinchu dentists' association.^[4] He later earned a master's degree in management science from Tamkang University and a Master of Business Administration (M.B.A.) degree from National Chiao Tung University.^[7]

Political career

Ker is a founding member of the Democratic Progressive Party and was first elected to the Legislative Yuan in 1992. He represented Hsinchu district from 1993 to 2008, and again starting in 2016. From 2008 to 2016 and again from 2020, Ker was elected via proportional representation.^[8][9][10]

On 17 August 2022, in the aftermath of then Speaker of the United States House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi's visit to Taiwan on 2–3 August, China blacklisted seven Taiwanese officials including Ker as "diehard "Taiwan independence" separatists" due to their support for Taiwan independence. The blacklist bans them from entering mainland China and the Special Administrative Regions of Hong Kong and Macau, and restricts them from working with Chinese officials. Chinese state-run tabloid Global Times labelled Ker and the six officials as "diehard secessionists".^[11]

On 11 July 2025, during a dispute in the Legislative Yuan, Ker invoked Article 100 of the Criminal Code, stating: "Article 100 of the Criminal Code still exists." (Article 100 of the Criminal Code stipulates penalties for those "intending to undermine the state," with offenders subject to up to five years' imprisonment, which has led critics to regard it as a form of thought crime.) In response, KMT legislator Wu Tsung-hsien also remarked that the DPP had previously advocated abolishing Article 100, and its current attempt to revive it constituted "a betrayal of Taiwanese democracy." Ker countered that Article 100 had not been abolished but was revised and remained in effect. He emphasized that it serves to protect national security and that acts of violence or coercion within the legislature should be prosecuted according to the law.^[12] The Kuomintang heavily publicized Ker's remarks, with KMT legislator Ling Tao claiming that Lai Ching-te and Ker would "imitate Yoon Suk-yeol next week by declaring martial law."^[13]

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Ker Chien-ming.