Lin Yang-kang is a politician in the Republic of China

Republic of China

The Republic of China , commonly known as Taiwan , is a unitary sovereign state located in East Asia. Originally based in mainland China, the Republic of China currently governs the island of Taiwan , which forms over 99% of its current territory, as well as Penghu, Kinmen, Matsu and other minor...

 (Taiwan).

Biography

Born in Nantou County

Nantou County

Nantou County is the second largest county of Taiwan. It is also the only landlocked county in Taiwan. Its name derives from the Hoanya Taiwanese aboriginal word Ramtau. Nantou County is officially administered as a county of Taiwan....

, Taiwan

Taiwan

Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...

, Lin graduated from National Taiwan University

National Taiwan University

National Taiwan University is a national co-educational university located in Taipei, Republic of China . In Taiwan, it is colloquially known as "Táidà" . Its main campus is set upon 1,086,167 square meters in Taipei's Da'an District. In addition, the university has 6 other campuses in Taiwan,...

 with a bachelor of science degree. He was:

• 1967-72: Magistrate
  Magistrate
  A magistrate is an officer of the state; in modern usage the term usually refers to a judge or prosecutor. This was not always the case; in ancient Rome, a magistratus was one of the highest government officers and possessed both judicial and executive powers. Today, in common law systems, a...
  
   of Nantou County
• 1976-78: Mayor of Taipei City
• 1978-81: Chairman of Taiwan Province
  Taiwan Province
  Taiwan Province is one of the two administrative divisions referred to as provinces and is controlled by the Republic of China . The province covers approximately 73% of the territory controlled by the Republic of China...
  
  
• 1981-84: Minister of the Interior
• 1984-87: Vice Premier of the Republic of China
• 1987-94: President of the Judicial Yuan
  Judicial Yuan
  The Judicial Yuan is one of five branches of the government of the Republic of China in Taiwan and serves as the highest judicial organ in Republic of China. Its Justices of the Constitutional Court , with 15 members, is charged with interpreting the Constitution...
  
  

He is a vice-chairman of the Kuomintang

Kuomintang

The Kuomintang of China , sometimes romanized as Guomindang via the Pinyin transcription system or GMD for short, and translated as the Chinese Nationalist Party is a founding and ruling political party of the Republic of China . Its guiding ideology is the Three Principles of the People, espoused...

. In the 1990s, Lin was in the "non-mainstream faction" that aimed to be less confrontational with the People's Republic of China

People's Republic of China

China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...

 than Lee Teng-hui

Lee Teng-hui

Lee Teng-hui is a politician of the Republic of China . He was the 7th, 8th, and 9th-term President of the Republic of China and Chairman of the Kuomintang from 1988 to 2000. He presided over major advancements in democratic reforms including his own re-election which marked the first direct...

. He tried to replace Lee in the 1990 presidential election, with Chiang Wei-kuo

Chiang Wei-kuo

Chiang Wei-kuo was an adopted son of President Chiang Kai-shek, adoptive brother of President Chiang Ching-kuo, and an important figure in the Kuomintang . His courtesy names were Jianhao and Niantang .- Early life :...

 as his running mate.

He resigned his position as the head of the Judicial Yuan to become a presidential candidate in the 1996 elections. Since the Kuomintang did not nominate him, Lin ran as an independent. Though he originally considered Chen Li-an

Chen Li-an

Chen Li-an , sometimes spelled Chen Lu-an, is an electrical engineer, mathematician and former Taiwanese politician.-Biography:Son of former Vice President Chen Tsyr-shiou and earned his masters' and Ph.D. in mathematics from New York University. He had a close friendship with Wang Yung-ching, a...

 as his vice presidential running mate, finally he still picked former Premier Hau Pei-tsun

Hau Pei-tsun

Hau Pei-tsun was Premier of the Republic of China from May 30, 1990 to February 10, 1993 and a 4-star general in the ROC Army.-Biography:Born to a well-to-do family in Yancheng, Jiangsu, Hau received a military education from the Chinese Military Academy, Chinese Army University, U.S. Army Command...

, considering Hau's background might attract more mainlanders' votes for him. However because of his pro-China and pro-reunification

Chinese reunification

Chinese reunification refers to the bringing together of all of the territories controlled by the People's Republic of China and the Republic of China under a single political entity...

 standpoints during the Third Taiwan Strait Crisis

Third Taiwan Strait Crisis

The Third Taiwan Strait Crisis, also called the 1995–1996 Taiwan Strait Crisis or the 1996 Taiwan Strait Crisis, was the effect of a series of missile tests conducted by the People's Republic of China in the waters surrounding Taiwan including the Taiwan Strait from July 21, 1995 to March 23, 1996...

, they only finished third with 14.9% of the vote. He has since retired from political affairs and secluded himself in Taichung

Taichung

-Demographics:Taichung’s population was an estimated 1,040,725 in August 2006. There are slightly more females in the city than males.24.32% of residents are children, while 16.63% are young people, 52.68% are middle-age, and 6.73% are elderly....

after this defeat.

Lin is married to Chen Ho (陳閤) with one son and 3 daughters.