Mayor Ma cutting back on hair gel, opting for a more natural-looking do

As the year-end race for Taipei mayor gains steam, every move the candidates make is being carefully scrutinized, including their looks.

The 52-year-old Taipei City Mayor Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) of the KMT has been seen sporting a younger look. He not only has a new hairstyle, but also managed to shed some weight.

Ma appears to have cut back on his use of hair gel, opting for a more natural look. The new style has been widely interpreted as a bid to court younger voters.

The 81kg Ma has shed 3kg in the last two months. His goal weight is 76 kg.

Although Ma tried to downplay his new look, the campaign team of Cabinet Secretary-General Lee Ying-yuan (李應元) of the DPP has taken notice.

"We're paying close attention to what [Ma] wears and how he looks. Although it sounds shallow, you cannot deny that appearance plays an important role in a campaign," said Lin Shih-chia (林世嘉), Lee's office manager.

Lin said that she is constantly giving the 49-year-old Lee advice on what he should wear to make himself look younger.

"Although we're not planning to hire a professional stylist to take care of his look and hairstyle at this stage of the campaign, we're giving him advice in this regard on a daily basis," Lin said. "Who knows, we might hire a pro to give him professional advice if necessary."

So does Lee plan to join the weight-loss club to shed some weight for a fresh look?

"Well, I don't think I need to do that since I practice Qi Gong on a regular basis and I was born beautiful," Lee joked.