In late 1991, she successfully stood for election as a National Assembly member for the southern city of Kaohsiung. A few years later, at the invitation of then Taipei City mayor Chen Shui-bian, she became director of the city's Bureau of Social Affairs.
八十年底，她南下高雄參選國代，以高票當選，爾後受到當時擔任台北市長的陳水扁邀請，出任社會局長。