White Wolf, an ex-criminal gang leader who is running for Taiwan's parliament, found himself squashed in a lift with a gaggle of young women who support one of Taiwan's most famous heavy-metal singers and outspoken China critic, Freddy Lim.
White Wolf, 67, real name Chang An-lo, who is running for a small party that favors unification with China, told the women Freddy Lim, the long-haired, heavily tattooed, leather-clad singer, was good-looking. The women smiled awkwardly and mumbled "he's all right" as they waited for the doors to open.
Welcome to the colorful if sometimes weird world of democracy in free-wheeling Taiwan, where video of the elevator exchange did the rounds on social media, a far cry from solemn Communist Party rule in neighboring China which views the island as a breakaway province to be united eventually, by force if necessary.