Han Kuo-yu, a rising political star in Taiwan, said Tuesday that he would be willing to risk his “personal reputation” in order to change Taiwan for the better, leading people familiar with Taiwan politics to believe that he may be planning to run for its top office in 2020.

Han, while massively popular, only won the election for mayor of the island’s southern Kaohsiung city in November. In his Tuesday speech, Han said that only when Taiwan changes can Kaohsiung change.

Insiders say it could harm Han’s reputation if he were to run for top office so soon after his start as mayor, as it is tradition among Taiwan’s political candidates to leave their offices in order to show determination to run in an election. If Han does run, and later steps down, that could create a problem for the Kuomintang (KMT), as it would risk losing Kaohsiung, a city long loyal to its rival Democratic Progressive Party.

Han added that he is “unable” to participate in the forthcoming Kuomintang (KMT) primary for the 2020 top office election under “the current KMT election mechanism,” though he did not give further explanation. KMT’s primary election rules for 2020 have not been set yet.

In response to Han’s statement, Taiwan's richest man and chairman of semiconductor giant Foxconn, Terry Gou, said the KMT should set up rules that would allow for Han to participate in the election. Gou said last Wednesday that he plans to participate in the KMT primary.

Related: Could Foxconn Founder Terry Gou be Taiwan’s Next Leader?