This article lists thepolitical parties in the Republic of China (Taiwan) from 7 December 1949.
The organization of political parties in Taiwan is governed by thePolitical Parties Act [zh], enacted on 6 December 2017. The Political Parties Act defines political parties as "political groups consisting of Republic of China (ROC)citizens with a common political ideology who safeguard the free, democratic, constitutional order, assist in shaping the political will of the people, and nominate candidates for election to public office."[1][2]
Prior to the passage of the Political Parties Act, political organizations in Taiwan followed the Civil Associations Act, also known as the Civil Organizations Act, promulgated in 1989.[1][2] The Civil Associations Act required that groups held a convention to announce the formation of a political party, and within thirty days of the announcement, provide a list of party members and a party charter to theMinistry of the Interior.[3] Groups established when the Civil Associations Act was in effect should have revised their charters to comply with the Political Parties Act by 7 December 2019. To be compliant with the Political Parties Act, political groups must additionally convene a representative assembly or party congress for four consecutive years and have followed relevant laws and regulations governing the nomination of candidates to campaign in elections for public office for the same time period. Within one year of filing for political party status, a political group must complete legal person registration. The Ministry of the Interior requires that political parties submit annual property and financial statements. Political organizations that do not meet these regulations were dissolved and removed from the registry of political parties.[1][2]
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Political party movements in Taiwan started in the late 1910s after World War I, during theTaishō era (Taishō democracy). Taiwanese political movements at this time were to modify the discriminatory colonial laws established in earlier years, and to set up local autonomy systems like inMainland Japan. The largest political movement at this time was thePetition Movement for the Establishment of a Taiwanese Parliament. At the same time, theInternational Communist Movement also influenced Taiwan, manyLeft-wing parties and organizations were also established.
Notable Taiwanese parties during this time are:
At the same time, the political parties inMainland Japan also affected Taiwan. Those who served asGovernor-General of Taiwan were also members of theHouse of Peers of theImperial Diet(帝国議会). Party affiliations of the Governor-Generals were:
In the late 1930s, theEmpire of Japan joined theSecond World War. To prepare for thePacific War, all political parties inMainland Japan were merged by then-Prime MinisterFumimaro Konoe into a single organization
with its Taiwanese branch
was the only legal political party-like organization in Taiwan until the end ofWorld War II.
Taiwan wasceded back to theRepublic of China, founded in1912 on themainland, on25 October 1945. From 1945 until 1949,political parties in China which had operated covertly under Japanese rule were permitted to operate in Taiwan province. The rulingKuomintang set up formal branches in Taiwan, and so did other major political parties including theChinese Communist Party (in 1946). Although it had no formal connection with the Taiwanese Communist Party suppressed by Japanese authorities in the 1930s (which was instead affiliated with the Communist Party of Japan), the Taiwan branch of the Chinese Communist Party absorbed many former members of the Taiwanese Communist Party. However, against the backdrop of theChinese Civil War which erupted soon after the retrocession of Taiwan, the Kuomintang-controlled Republic of China government attempted to restrict the operation of Chinese Communist Party cells in Taiwan, and other opposition parties.
With the Republic of China government rapidly losing the Chinese Civil War against the Chinese Communist Party, the ruling Kuomintang began preparing to move the government to Taiwan in 1949. Taiwan was placed undermartial law from 19 May 1949 to 15 July 1987. The Taiwan provincial branch of the Chinese Communist Party was particularly targeted, and by 1952 had been completely destroyed.
During this time, all forms ofopposition were forbidden by the government, only three political parties that retreated to Taiwan were allowed to participate the elections.
All other oppositions who were not allowed not form a political party could only be listed as "independent candidate". These movements were calledTangwai movement (黨外, literallyoutside of Kuomintang). A notable exception in this era was
It was established "illegally" on 28 September 1986, then was legalized in the next year by the lifting of the martial law.
As Taiwan democratized in the late 1980s, the number of legally registered political parties inTaiwan had increased exponentially and continued to increase year by year, indicating a liberal democracy and high political freedom inTaiwan.
| Year | 1990 | 1992 | 1994 | 1996 | 1998 | 2000 | 2002 | 2004 | 2006 | 2008 | 2010 | 2012 | 2014 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. parties | 60 | 72 | 75 | 82 | 87 | 94 | 99 | 110 | 122 | 145 | 177 | 234 | 264 | 310 | 334 | 220 |
In recent decades, Taiwan's political campaigns can be classified to two ideological blocs
The majority in both coalitions state a desire to maintain the status quo for now. Many minor parties in Taiwan are unaligned with either coalition.
On 6 December 2017, thePolitical Parties Act (政黨法) was enforced. TheAct requires the political parties to maintain a number of compliance, including
By the end of 2018, among the 343 existing political party declarations: 220 have met the new compliance, 56 chose to dissolve or transformed to a national political association.
Peng, the DPP's pro-independence challenger, secured 21%, whilepro-Beijing New Party candidate Ling Tang-Kang polled only 15%.
| Nationally represented (Legislative Yuan seats) |  | |
|---|---|---|
| Locally represented | ||
| Other parties | ||
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