He attended the University of South Carolina from 1971 to 1973 and pursued a master's degree in international studies but had to withdraw due to his father's ailing health.

[6] Jason Hu began his work in the central government when Taiwan was still a single-party state ruled by KMT.

Mayor Hu remarked, "Because I knew that if I didn't do anything by 5:30 am, people getting out of bed would find out about it on the radio or television.

"[13] Jason Hu won re-election with relative ease in the three-in-one elections on 3 December 2005 with a nearly twenty percent margin of victory over Democratic Progressive Party challenger Lin Chia-lung.

He was under pressure in 2010 after the shooting of Weng Chi-nan revealed potential ties between Taichung City Police and gangsters.

[17] On 29 November 2014, Hu joined the Republic of China municipal election as a Kuomintang candidate for Mayor of Taichung going against Lin Chia-lung of the Democratic Progressive Party.

[18] In December 2014, Hu accepted an offer from Feng Chia University to serve as department chair upon the conclusion of his third mayoral term.

[21] Eric Chu, the KMT's 2016 presidential candidate, named Hu the manager of his campaign in December 2015.

[28] Shortly after the crash, the Legislative Yuan proposed an amendment to the Road Traffic Management and Punishment Law requiring the driver and all passengers in a car use seat belts.