Major Political Parties

As introduced by the Yearbook of the Republic of China:

Democratic Progressive Party

The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) was formed on September 28, 1986. Its organizational structure consists of a National Congress that elects 30 members to the Central Executive Committee and 11 members to the Central Review Committee. The Central Executive Committee, in turn, elects the 10 members of the Central Standing Committee. The members of these committees all serve two-year terms.

Previously, the National Congress elected the party chairman. However, the second plenary meeting of the DPP's Seventh National Congress, held in September 1997, adopted a provision that the chairman be directly elected by party members. The chairman appoints a secretary-general, one or two deputy secretaries-general, and a number of department directors.

At an extraordinary session of the National Congress held on April 20, 2002, the DPP adopted a proposal stipulating that the president double as chairman whenever the party is in power. When it is not, the chairman will be directly elected by all party members. In addition, the April 20 congress created positions for up to three vice chairmen. On July 21, President Chen Shui-bian assumed chairmanship at the party's Tenth National Congress.

The nomination process for DPP candidates has undergone frequent changes in recent years. At the DPP's Sixth National Congress, held in April and May of 1994, a two-tier primary system was initiated in which ordinary members of the DPP voted for candidates in one primary election and party cadres voted in a second primary. The results of the two elections were combined, with equal weight given to each.

At the second plenary meeting of the Sixth National Congress held in March 1995, the nomination process for the presidential and gubernatorial candidates was modified to add open primaries for DPP members and non-members alike. It was also decided that candidate slots on the party's list of national constituency representatives for the Legislative Yuan and National Assembly be allocated equally among three groups: (1) scholars and experts, (2) representatives of disadvantaged groups, and (3) politicians.

At the Seventh National Congress held in June 1996, additional changes were made to the nomination process. It was decided that the primary reserved for the party leadership would be abolished. A two-stage process, involving a closed primary for party members and an open primary for all eligible voters, with each given equal weight, would be used to nominate candidates for president, provincial governor, special municipality mayors, county magistrates, provincial municipality mayors, Legislative Yuan members, National Assembly members, and special municipal councilmen. However, this procedure was repealed at the provisional meeting of the Seventh National Congress held in December 1996. The second stage, an open primary for all eligible voters, was replaced by opinion polls. It was further decided at the meeting that the party chairman be elected directly by all members of the party starting in 1998.

At the second meeting of the Eighth National Congress held in May 1999, a special rule was adopted for the 2000 presidential election: A qualified candidate must be recommended by more than 40 party leaders, and if there is only one such candidate, the National Congress must be convened to ratify the nomination by a three-fifths majority. At the provisional meeting of the National Congress in July, former Taipei City Mayor Chen Shui-bian was officially nominated to represent the DPP in the 2000 presidential election. He was re-nominated as the DPP candidate for the 2004 presidency at the second meeting of the party's Tenth National Congress held in December 2003.

The Kuomintang

The Kuomintang (KMT), or Nationalist Party, celebrated its one hundredth anniversary on November 24, 1994. The KMT had won almost every major election until it lost to the Democratic Progressive Party in the 1997 election for county magistrates and city mayors for the first time, the 2001 Legislative Yuan election, and the 2000 and 2004 presidential elections. As a result of its defeat in the 2000 presidential election, the KMT initiated a major reorganization, including re-registration of all its members.

At the grassroots level, members are organized into cells. Moving upward, there are district, county, and city congresses and committees. The highest level is the National Congress and the Central Committee.

The National Congress is the highest authority of the party. Its delegates are selected to serve four-year terms. The congress amends the party charter, determines the party platform and other important policies, elects the party chairman and the Central Committee members, and approves candidates nominated by the chairman to serve as vice chairmen and members of the Central Advisory Council. When the National Congress is in recess, the supreme party organization is the Central Committee, which holds a plenary session every year.

The Central Standing Committee, which represents the Central Committee when that body is not in session, is the most influential organization in the KMT. It meets every week to discuss and approve important policies and nominate candidates for important positions. General party affairs are managed by the secretary-general. At lower levels, party organizations have their own secretariats and administrative staffs.

The first meeting of the KMT's 14th National Congress held in August 1993 approved significant changes in how party affairs were conducted, deciding that the National Congress would elect the party chairman through secret ballot. Then ROC President Lee Teng-hui won 83 percent of the votes and was reelected chairman of the party. In addition, four vice-chairmen, nominated by Lee and approved by the National Congress, were added to the Central Committee. The KMT also decided that the chairman would appoint only 10 to 15 of the 31 members of the Central Standing Committee, with the remaining members elected by the Central Committee. Finally, it decided to hold the National Congress every two years, instead of every four years.

After the KMT lost the presidential election in March 2000, Lee Teng-hui resigned as party chairman and Lien Chan succeeded him as acting chairman. At the provisional meeting of the 15th National Congress held three months later, Lien was elected party chairman. Five new vice-chairpersons, including one woman, were nominated by Lien and approved by the congress. At the fourth plenary session of the 15th Central Committee following the provisional meeting of the National Congress, all 31 members were elected to the new Central Standing Committee, with none selected by appointment.

The provisional meeting also revised the party charter, eliminating the provincial party organization. Another important change made was the direct election of future party chairmen by all party members. On March 24, 2001, Lien Chan became the first directly elected party chairman by winning 97 percent of the vote.

The 16th National Congress was convened in September 2003. A new 210-member Central Committee was elected, which, in turn, elected the 31 members of the Central Standing Committee. The Congress also ratified its party chairman Lien Chan's alliance with his People First Party counterpart James Soong in a joint bid for the 2004 presidential election.

On May 19, 2004, the KMT Central Standing Committee unanimously approved Chairman Lien Chan's proposal to push for a merger with the PFP, in an attempt to counterbalance the DPP-led government following the loss of the Lien-Soong joint bid for the presidency. The committee also entrusted Lien and Soong to form a task force to draft a master plan, which would be submitted to the KMT National Congress for approval.

New Party

In August 1993, shortly before the Kuomintang's 14th National Congress, a group of dissatisfied KMT members, including six Legislative Yuan members and one former lawmaker, broke away from the KMT to establish the New Party (NP). Such prominent individuals as the former Finance Minister Wang Chien-shien and former head of the Environmental Protection Administration Jaw Shau-kong were among the founders of the NP, which adopted an anti-corruption and social justice platform. The goal of the NP was to attract voters who were dissatisfied with the performance of the KMT and opposed to the DPP's advocacy of Taiwan independence.

The New Party differs from the KMT and the DPP in organizational structure, stressing the leadership of those holding public office. At the head of the party is the National Council. The chairman of the party is currently held by Yok Mu-ming.

People First Party

In the 2000 presidential election, former KMT provincial governor James Soong, running as an independent, lost by less than three percentage points to DPP's Chen Shui-bian. Immediately after the election, Soong's supporters called on him to form a new party. Eventually, the People First Party (PFP) was established, attracting many KMT and NP lawmakers. In an unprecedented move, the PFP opened its membership to citizens 16 years of age, two years younger than the minimum age required by other parties. It is now the third largest party after the DPP and the KMT in the Legislative Yuan.

According to the party charter, the highest policy-making body is the National Council, which consists of current or former officeholders in the executive or legislative branches of the government (at either national or local levels), current or former party officials, and representatives from different sectors of society. This council elects a Central Executive Committee comprised of 21 members and 7 alternate members, each of whom serves a two-year term. Every two years, all party members directly elect the party chairman. James Soong was elected the first PFP chairman in March 2000 and the second in May 2002.

Taiwan Solidarity Union

The Taiwan Solidarity Union (TSU) is a new addition to Taiwan's party system. It registered with the Ministry of the Interior on July 31, 2001 and held its inaugural meeting 12 days later. With the endorsement of former President Lee Teng-hui, it attracts supporters from the KMT, the DPP, and other political groups. Its aim is to "stabilize the political situation, promote the economy, consolidate democracy, and strengthen Taiwan."

In terms of internal structure, the TSU has a Party Congress serving as the highest authority of the party. The party chairman appoints 21 members to the Central Executive Committee every two years. In addition, the party chairman and current legislators are ex officio members of the Central Executive Committee. The party chairman is directly elected by party members for a three-year term.

The current party chairman is Huang Chu-wen. The TSU originally only opened its membership to candidates who ran in national and local elections. Since October 2002, it has begun to recruit members from the general public.