Politics of the Republic of China

The Republic of China (ROC) currently has jurisdiction over Taiwan, Kinmen, Matsu, and the Pescadores Islands (Penghu) and several smaller islands. Taiwan's two major cities, Taipei and Kaohsiung, are centrally administered municipalities. The rest of Taiwan and the Penghu Islands are administered together as the Province of Taiwan. Kinmen, Matsu, and smaller nearby islands are administered as counties of Fukien (Fujian) Province.

Political parties

As of November 2004, there are 108 officially registered parties in the Republic of China. However, only six are considered major with seats in the Legislative Yuan. They are (in order of legislative representation): Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) 民主進步黨, Kuomintang (KMT) 中國國民黨, People First Party (PFP) 親民黨, Taiwan Solidarity Union (TSU) 台灣團結聯盟, Non-Partisan Solidarity Union (NPSU) 無黨團結聯盟, and New Party (NP) 新黨. The politics of Taiwan is often depicted as a contest between the Pan-Green Coalition and the Pan-Blue Coalition.

Related Topics:
Democratic Progressive Party - Kuomintang - People First Party - Taiwan Solidarity Union - Non-Partisan Solidarity Union - New Party - Pan-Green Coalition - Pan-Blue Coalition

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• Pan-Green Coalition:
• Democratic Progressive Party or DPP (Su Tseng-chang)
• Taiwan Solidarity Union or TSU (Shu Chin-chiang)
• Taiwan Independence Party or TAIP (Cheng Pang-chen)
• Pan-Blue Coalition:
• Kuomintang or KMT (Nationalist Party) (Ma Ying-jeou)
• People First Party (James Soong)
• New Party or NP
• Non-Partisan Solidarity Union (Chang Po-ya)
• Minor parties:
• China Old Veterans Unification Party
• Taiwan Number One Party
• Great Chinese Battle Line of Unification
• New Nation Association
• Democratic Alliance
• Natural Law Party
• Taiwan Independence Party
• Green Party Taiwan
• Non-Party Alliance
• Farmers' Party
• Chinese Liberal Democratic Party
• Labor Party
• Chinese Youth Party

The aftermath of the 2000 Presidential election and the 2001 legislative election left the ROC fragmented among several political parties. These parties can be divided into "blue" factions (Pan-Blue Coalition) and "green" factions (Pan-Green Coalition), with the "blue" faction tending toward unification and a national identity that is linked with China and the "green" faction leaning toward a national identity based on Taiwan independence which is separate from the Chinese national identity. The complex structure of the party system in the ROC is also influenced by the voting system which uses single non-transferable vote for legislative elections and first past the post for executive elections.

Related Topics:
2000 Presidential election - Pan-Blue Coalition - Pan-Green Coalition - Taiwan independence - Single non-transferable vote - First past the post

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The "blue" faction comes from the color of the Kuomintang and includes the Kuomintang, the People First Party, and the New Party. The "green" faction comes from the color of the Democratic Progressive Party and includes the Democratic Progressive Party and the Taiwan Solidarity Union.

Related Topics:
Kuomintang - People First Party - New Party - Democratic Progressive Party - Taiwan Solidarity Union

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The Kuomintang (Nationalist Party) - Until 1986, Taiwan's political system was effectively controlled by one party, the KMT, the leader of which also was the ROC president. Many top political officials were members of the party. The party claimed over 2 million members, and its net assets were reputed to total more than NT $61.2 billion, making it the richest political party in the world.

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The Democratic Progressive Party - After 1986, the KMT's hold on power was challenged by the emergence of competing political parties. Before 1986, candidates opposing the KMT ran in elections as independents or "nonpartisans." Before the 1986 island-wide elections many "nonpartisans" grouped together to create Taiwan's first new political party, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP). Despite the official ban on forming new political parties, Taiwan authorities did not prohibit the DPP from operating, and in the 1986 Island-wide elections DPP and independent candidates captured more than 20% of the vote.

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The Civic Organizations Law passed in 1989 allowed for the formation of new political parties, thereby legalizing the DPP, and its support and influence increased. In the 1992 Legislative Yuan elections, the DPP won 51 seats in the 161-seat body. While this was only half the number of KMT seats, it made the DPP's voice an important factor in legislative decisions. Winning the Taipei mayor's position in December 1994, significantly enhanced the DPP's image. The DPP continued its strong showing in the 1995 LY race, winning 45 of the 157 seats to the KMT's 81. The DPP for the first time succeeded in outpolling the KMT in the November 1997 local elections, gaining 12 of the 23 magistrate and mayoral seats as opposed to the KMT's 8 and winning 43% of the vote versus the KMT's 41%.

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The DPP membership is made up largely of native Taiwanese. The DPP maintains that Taiwan is an entity separate from mainland China and supports an independent "Republic of Taiwan" as part of its platform. The recent downplaying of Taiwan independence by the DPP as a party, however, led to the formation by hard-line advocates of a new political party called the Taiwan Independence Party in December 1996.

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The New Party (NP) - was formed in August 1993, by a group made up largely of second-generation mainlander KMT members who were unhappy both with corruption in the KMT and with what they saw as the "Taiwanization" of KMT ideology and leadership. The NP emphasizes "clean government" and the original KMT focus on reunification with the mainland. NP influence remains modest and seems on the wane; it won 21 of the 164 LY seats in the 1995 elections but only 11 of 225 seats in 1998. The New Party was almost annihilated in the 2001 election as its members defected to the Peoples First Party.

Related Topics:
1993 - Mainlander - Taiwanization

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The People's First Party (PFP) - A new opposition party was formed in the wake of the March 2000 presidential election by the runner up, a KMT maverick candidate. The People's First Party is composed primarily of former KMT and NP members who supported former KMT Taiwan Provincial Governor James Soong's presidential bid. The PFP currently had 17 members in the LY before the 2001 election, but increased its representation to over 40 in that election.

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The Taiwan Solidarity Union - In 2001, supporters of former President Lee founded the Taiwanese Solidarity Union (TSU). Even though Lee did not join this party, he is named its spiritual leader and most believe he endorsed it. The TSU was formed primarily because, as it took power, the DPP had to moderate its standing as regards to Taiwan independence, leaving a hole in the Taiwanese political spectrum. In a bid to help the "green" side achieve control in the Legislative Yuan, the TSU was formed to attract the radical votes left over from DPP and the localist support for KMT. The TSU had often expressed that it wanted to be the "decisive minority".

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Although some friction between mainlanders and native Taiwanese still exists, it has abated with time, and there has been a gradual melding of the two communities. In 1972, then-Premier Chiang Ching-kuo began a concentrated effort to bring Taiwanese into more senior position in the central administration and the KMT. Upon his accession to the presidency in January 1988, Lee Teng-hui, who is a native Taiwanese, continued this process. Steps by the government to redress past wrongs such as setting up a memorial to the victims of the February 28 Incident have contributed to this process.

Related Topics:
Mainlander - 1972 - February 28 Incident

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Currently, the Pan-Blue Coalition is attempting to integrate itself into a single party.

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Prior to the December 11, 2004 elections to the Legislative Yuan, signs indicated that the DPP would for the first time dominate the Legislative Yuan. Polls projected a huge pan-green victory, and the DPP's election tactics were based on them. This over-reliance on polls resulted in a huge set back. The pan-blue opposition managed to maintain their majority status within the Legislative Yuan, winning 114 seats out of the 225 seats. The Pan-Green only managed to win 101 seats. The remaining 10 seats were won by the independent candidates. Although the Pan-Green coalition increased their seats by one and the DPP remained the largest party, because of raised hopes the election was viewed as a disaster, and President Chen resigned his post as Chairman of DPP as a result.

Related Topics:
December 11 - 2004

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See also: List of political parties in Taiwan

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