Yang won election to the Kinmen County Council in 2002 and 2005 while affiliated with the New Party.[2][3] Yang won a third term as county councilor in 2009, representing the Kuomintang.[4] He was elected to the Legislative Yuan in 2012, again under the Kuomintang banner.[1]
In April 2012, Yang abstained from the first round of voting on a resolution banning the import and sale of beef from the United States.[5] Although he voted against the resolution in the second round,[6] the Kuomintang fined him and several other affiliated legislators.[7] The total value of fines assessed was over NT$3 million, setting a record for the largest total fine in the Legislative Yuan's history.[7] In 2013, Yang drew attention to rising airfares.[8][9] During his legislative term, Yang commented often on foreign relations,[10] specifically regarding Japan,[11] and aid distributed to the Philippines after Typhoon Haiyan in 2013.[12] Regarding the military, Yang opposed a withdrawal of forces from Dadan and Erdan Islands in 2013.[13] Following unauthorized visits by private citizens to a military base housing Boeing AH-64 Apache helicopters in 2015, Yang questioned the status of military cooperation between Taiwan and the United States.[14] While serving on the Legislative Yuan, Yang expressed support for the Kinmen County Government to pursue a deal on the supply of utilities from China.[15]
