{{Short description|Taiwanese-American politician and businesswoman}} {{Infobox officeholder | native_name = {{nobold|戰琬瑜}} | native_name_lang = zh | birth_date = {{Birth year and age|1966}} | birth_place = Taipei, Taiwan | office = Member of the San Antonio City Council | term = 2009–2013 | citizenship = United States | education = Beijing University of Technology (BS)<br />University of Texas at Austin (MS) | image = Elisa Chan.jpg | caption = Chan at a city council meeting in 2013 }}
'''Elisa Chan''' ({{lang-zh|c=戰琬瑜|p=Zhàn Wǎnyú}}) is a Taiwanese-American politician and businesswoman who has served as a member for District 9 of the San Antonio City Council in San Antonio, Texas. She was a candidate in the 2022 Republican primary for the Texas House of Representatives.
==Early life and education== Chan was born in Taipei, Taiwan, in 1966 to Chinese parents.<ref name="Karam 2003">{{cite news |last1=Karam |first1=Heather Ray |date=2003-12-05 |title=San Antonio's Rising Stars: Wan-Yu Elisa Chan |volume=17 |page=B14 |work=San Antonio Business Journal |issue=46 |url=https://www.proquest.com/docview/226009272 |url-access=subscription |access-date=2023-02-14 |id={{ProQuest|226009272}} }}</ref> She was raised in Taiwan and Brazil before she and her family moved to China in 1980.<ref name="Karam 2003"/> She emigrated to the United States in 1988 to attend the University of Texas at San Antonio, and then in 1992 with Clifford Hew co-founded Unintech Consulting Engineers (UNINTECH), a structural and civil engineering design and consulting firm.<ref name="Karam 2003"/><ref name="Garcia 2022">{{cite news |last1=Garcia |first1=Gilbert |title=Garcia: Tone-deaf comments about LGBTQ people drove her into political exile – now Elisa Chan is back |url=https://www.expressnews.com/news/news_columnists/gilbert_garcia/article/Elisa-Chan-return-from-political-exile-16978900.php |access-date=20 May 2022 |work=San Antonio Express-News |date=March 5, 2022}}</ref> She and Hew married in 1994.<ref name="Karam 2003"/> She became a citizen of the United States in 1999.{{Citation needed|date=May 2022}}
Chan attended the Beijing University of Technology, where she received her B.S. in computer software engineering in 1987, and later received her master's degree in computer science at the University of Texas at San Antonio in 1993.<ref name="Karam 2003"/> After completing her master's degree, she was a product manager for Emis Software Inc., and she began work for the Research Imaging Center at the University of Texas Health Science Center in 1995.<ref name="Karam 2003"/> In 1998, she joined UNINTECH and oversaw the expansion of the company.<ref name="Karam 2003"/>
==Political career== In 2009, Chan was elected to the San Antonio City Council,<ref name="Garcia 2022"/> becoming the first woman and first member of a minority group to represent the district.<ref name="Aaronson 2014">{{cite news |last1=Aaronson |first1=Becca |title=Challengers Say a Tea Party Favorite Shortchanged Constituents |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2014/02/14/us/politics/challengers-say-a-tea-party-favorite-shortchanged-constituents.html |access-date=20 May 2022 |work=New York Times |date=February 13, 2014}}</ref> She easily won reelection several times.<ref name="Moravec 2013"/><ref name="Loyd 2013">{{cite news |last1=Loyd |first1=Ryan |title=What Will Chan's Absence Mean For City Council? Not A Whole Lot |url=https://www.tpr.org/government-public-policy/2013-10-04/what-will-chans-absence-mean-for-city-council-not-a-whole-lot |access-date=20 May 2022 |work=Texas Public Radio |date=October 4, 2013}}</ref>
In August 2013, the ''San Antonio Express-News'' published a report based on a secretly-recorded May 21 conversation between Chan and a colleague about a proposed anti-discrimination ordinance designed to protect lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender residents from discrimination in which she made a variety of comments, including a reference to the LGBTQ community as "disgusting";<ref name="Chasnoff 2013">{{cite news |last1=Chasnoff |first1=Brian |title=Elisa Chan reveals homophobic views in secret recording |url=https://www.expressnews.com/news/news_columnists/brian_chasnoff/article/Elisa-Chan-reveals-homophobic-views-in-secret-4736543.php |access-date=20 May 2022 |work=San Antonio Express-News |date=August 16, 2013}}</ref> this occurred several months prior to the city council debating the proposed human rights ordinance.<ref name="Baugh Mar 3 2016"/> Political officials criticized her comments after the report was published and the Human Rights Campaign and others called for her to resign,<ref name="Baugh 2013">{{cite news |last1=Baugh |first1=Josh |title=Elisa Chan's taped remarks spark a wide reaction |url=https://www.mysanantonio.com/news/local/article/Elisa-Chan-s-taped-remarks-spark-a-wide-reaction-4738870.php |access-date=20 May 2022 |work=MySA |date=August 18, 2013}}</ref> and her comments received national attention from the media.<ref name="Aaronson 2014"/><ref name="Moravec 2013"/> After defending her comments on the basis of freedom of speech,<ref name="Baugh Aug 20 2013">{{cite news |last1=Baugh |first1=Josh |title=Elisa Chan says anti-gay remarks are free speech |url=https://www.mysanantonio.com/news/local/politics/article/Elisa-Chan-says-anti-gay-remarks-are-free-speech-4745674.php |access-date=20 May 2022 |work=MySA |date=August 20, 2013}}</ref> she voted against the ordinance in September, and the ordinance passed 8–3.<ref name="Baugh Mar 3 2016">{{cite news |last1=Baugh |first1=Josh |title=S.A. council passes nonbias ordinance |url=http://www.mysanantonio.com/default/article/S-A-council-passes-nonbias-ordinance-4788697.php |access-date=20 May 2022 |work=MySA |date=September 6, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303211356/http://www.mysanantonio.com/default/article/S-A-council-passes-nonbias-ordinance-4788697.php |archive-date=March 3, 2016}}</ref><ref name="Weber 2013">{{cite news |last1=Weber |first1=Paul J. |title=Gay Rights: San Antonio adopts disputed measure |work=Sunday Gazette-Mail |agency=Associated Press |date=September 8, 2013|id={{ProQuest| }} }}</ref>
In October 2013, Chan announced her resignation from the city council effective October 18 after stating in September that she would run against the incumbent Tea Party Republican Donna Campbell in Texas Senate District 25.<ref name="Moravec 2013">{{cite news |last1=Moravec |first1=Eva Ruth |title=Elisa Chan resigns from council effective Oct. 18 |url=https://www.mysanantonio.com/news/local/article/Elisa-Chan-resigns-from-council-effective-Oct-18-4876947.php |access-date=20 May 2022 |work=MySA |date=October 8, 2013}}</ref><ref name="Aaronson 2014" /> She lost the primary election to Campbell by 31 points.<ref name="Garcia 2021">{{cite news |last1=Garcia |first1=Gilbert |title=Garcia: Former Councilwoman Elisa Chan eyes Larson's Texas House seat |url=https://www.expressnews.com/news/news_columnists/gilbert_garcia/article/Garcia-Former-Councilwoman-Elisa-Chan-eyes-16450805.php |access-date=20 May 2022 |work=San Antonio Express-News |date=September 11, 2021}}</ref>
In 2022, Chan competed in the Republican primary for the vacant seat in Texas House District 122 following the retirement of State Representative Lyle Larson.<ref name="Garrett 2022">{{cite news |last1=Garrett |first1=Robert T. |title=Just a few GOP voters in a few races will set Texas Legislature's path on taxes, spending, vouchers |url=https://www.dallasnews.com/news/politics/2022/02/11/a-few-gop-voters-a-few-races-texas-legislatures-path-on-taxes-spending-vouchers-about-to-be-set/ |access-date=20 May 2022 |work=The Dallas Morning News |date=February 11, 2022}}</ref> In the March 2022 primary, she received the most votes with 37 percent of the vote. A runoff election on May 24 was required because no candidate reached 50 percent.<ref name="McKinley Mar 2 2022">{{cite news |last1=McKinley |first1=Edward |title=Runoff set between Chan, Dorazio in GOP primary for Texas House district in North San Antonio |url=https://www.expressnews.com/news/legislature/article/Elisa-Chan-takes-early-lead-in-GOP-primary-for-16969769.php |access-date=20 May 2022 |work=San Antonio Express-News |date=March 2, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Voter Guide: What to know for the Texas runoff election |url=https://www.expressnews.com/projects/2022/san-antonio-texas-runoff-election-voter-guide/ |access-date=20 May 2022 |work=San Antonio Express-News |date=May 5, 2022}}</ref> She did not win the runoff election.<ref name="Lynch May 25, 2022">{{cite news |last1=Lynch |first1=David |title=Election 2022: Dorazio defeats Chan, locks down Republican nomination in Texas House District 122 race |url=https://www.kens5.com/article/news/politics/elections/election-primary-runoff-texas-house-22-chan-dorazio-san-antonio/273-9b962baa-db9d-420a-ab6b-8976209502f8 |access-date=4 June 2022 |work=KENS 5 |date=May 25, 2022}}</ref>
== Election results == {{Election box begin no change|title=Texas's 122nd House of Representatives district primary election}} {{Election box winning candidate with party link no change|party=Republican Party (United States)|candidate=Mark Dorazio|votes=7,930|percentage=55}} {{Election box candidate with party link no change|party=Republican Party (United States)|candidate=Elisa Chan|votes=6,496|percentage=45}} {{Election box end}}
==References== {{reflist}}
==External links== * {{cite web |title=Biography from San Antonio City Council website |url=http://www.sanantonio.gov/Council/d9/district9bio.aspx |accessdate=2013-11-18 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140418073918/http://www.sanantonio.gov/Council/d9/district9bio.aspx |archivedate=April 18, 2014 |url-status=dead }} <!-- Note: Since she resigned, I saved an archive copy for future use at http://www.webcitation.org/6KZ2vmxnJ?url=http://www.sanantonio.gov/Council/d9/district9bio.aspx (JimmB Oct 22, 2013) --> * [http://www.voteelisachan.com Campaign website] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220520072215/https://www.voteelisachan.com/ |date=2022-05-20 }}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chan, Elisa}} Category:American politicians of Taiwanese descent Category:American women of Taiwanese descent in politics Category:Asian-American people in Texas politics Category:Living people Category:1966 births Category:San Antonio City Council members Category:Taiwanese emigrants to the United States Category:Women city councillors in Texas Category:American city council members of Chinese descent Category:Naturalized citizens of the United States Category:University of Texas at San Antonio alumni Category:21st-century American women