Taiwan People's Party Explained

Taiwan People's Party
Native Name Lang:zh-Hant-TW
Headquarters:No. 27, Section 1, Hangzhou South Road, Zhongzheng District, Taipei City, Taiwan
Founder:Ko Wen-je
Chairman:Ko Wen-je
Country:Taiwan
Abbreviation:TPP
Membership Year:2023
Membership: 32,500[1]
Colours: Cyan
White
Flag:CIS of Taiwan People's Party.svg
Position:Centre-left
Seats1 Title:Legislative Yuan
Seats2 Title:Municipal mayors
Seats3 Title:Magistrates/mayors
Seats4 Title:Councillors
Seats5 Title:Township/city mayors
Taiwan People's Party
T:台灣民眾黨
S:台湾民众党
Bpmf:ㄊㄞˊ ㄨㄢ ㄇㄧㄣˊ ㄓㄨㄥˋ ㄉㄤˇ
W:T
P:Táiwān Mínzhòngdǎng
Tp:Táiwan Mín-jhòng-dǎng
Mps:Tái-wān Mín-jùng-dǎng
Gr:Tairuan Minjonqdaang
Poj:Tâi-oân Bîn-chiòng Tóng
Tl:Tâi-uân Bîn-tsiòng Tóng
H:Toi-Van Min Zung Dong

The Taiwan People's Party (TPP) is a centre-left political party in Taiwan. It was formally established on 6 August 2019 by Ko Wen-je, who serves as its first and current chairman. The party considers itself as an alternative third party to both the Democratic Progressive Party and Kuomintang.[2]

History

Founding

The party was proposed in August 2019 by Mayor of Taipei Ko Wen-je, for the Ministry of the Interior's approval as one of Taiwan's legal political parties.[3] It is named after political activist Chiang Wei-shui's Taiwanese People's Party,[4] which was formed in 1927 during Japanese colonial rule as Taiwan's first political party against Japanese fascism. The newly formed Taiwan People's Party conducted its founding assembly on 6 August 2019, which was Ko's 60th birthday and Chiang's 129th birthday, as a requirement of the Interior Ministry. According to Ko, the Taiwan People's Party seeks to "become an alternative" to both the Pan-Green Coalition headed by the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), as well as the Kuomintang (KMT)-influenced Pan-Blue Coalition.[5] [6] The Diplomat noticed that TPP had recruited heavily from Pan-Blue politicians to form TPP.

Chiang Li-jung, a descendant of Chiang Wei-shui's, stated that Ko was taking advantage of similarities between himself and Chiang Wei-shui. The Chiang Wei-shui Cultural Foundation panned the name of Ko's political party, stating that confusion may arise between it and Chiang's political activity.[7] [8] In response, Ko stated that he preferred to retain the name, as establishing a political party was not an illegal act and therefore should not be hindered in any way.[9] On 2 August 2019, Tseng Hsu-cheng, a former deputy mayor of Tainan, began a petition against the registration of the TPP under that name, citing the historical impact of the earlier Taiwanese People's Party.[10]

At a preliminary meeting on 6 August 2019, Ko was elected chairman of the party.[11] The founding assembly of the Taiwan People's Party was held at the National Taiwan University Hospital International Convention Center later that day.[12] Of 111 founding party members, 72 attended its founding assembly.[12] [13] The Taiwan People's Party charter permits party members to hold membership status in other political parties.[14] Many early party members worked for the Taipei City Government or for Ko. Among the TPP's first members were politicians formerly affiliated with the DPP and the Kuomintang, as well as a number of political independents.[14]

2020 elections

Ko stated that his Taiwan People's Party would contest the 2020 legislative election,[15] but that he would not mount an independent bid in the presidential election.[16] He later said that the TPP would nominate a full slate of 34 at-large legislative candidates.[17] [18] Political scientist Liao Da-chi opined that Ko's Taiwan People's Party would take more votes from supporters of the Democratic Progressive Party during the 2020 elections.[19] The Taiwan People's Party nominated its first eight candidates for single-member constituencies on 22 September 2019.[20] [21] During a second round of legislative nominations on 20 October 2019, Ko stated that the Taiwan People's Party sought to prevent a single political party from winning a legislative majority. The TPP described this tactic as "pushing the pan-blue and pan-green camps to the side to allow for the people to be in the center."[22] In November 2019, the Taiwan People's Party announced a party list of 29 at-large legislative candidates.[23] [24] In December 2019, the TPP's political goals grew in scale, as Ko stated that the party aimed to be the largest represented in the Legislative Yuan.[25] The TPP won five at-large seats in the 2020 legislative election, becoming the third largest party represented within the legislature.[26] [27]

2020 Kaohsiung mayoral by-election

Wu Yi-jheng of the TPP also ran a candidate in the 2020 Kaohsiung mayoral by-election. However, he finished with only 4.06% of the vote, a distant third to Chen Chi-mai of the DPP (70.03%) and Li Mei-jhen of the KMT (25.90%).

2024 elections

Ko ran as the official candidate for the TPP in the 2024 presidential election[28] [29] and contested in the legislative election. There were plans for a joint ticket in the presidential election with KMT's Hou Yu-ih. However, talks collapsed before registration for the presidential ballot after disagreements over policies and leadership issues.[30] Ko nominated Cynthia Wu, an at-large legislative member who served the 10th Legislative Yuan and businesswoman, as his running-mate on 24th November.[31] Despite the failure of TPP-KMT joint ticket, TPP and KMT presidential and vice-presidential candidates emphasized they would work together as fellow Pan-Blue parties.[32] The TPP nominated the maximum 34 at-large legislative candidates, and 10 legislative candidates for single-member constituencies, concentrating mostly in northern Taiwan.[33] [34] Ko championed himself as a "middle road" between the KMT and the DPP, attracting young voters that had been dissatisfied with the "big two parties".[35] According to The Diplomat, there is a shift recently in political stance closer to Pan-Blue than to initially Pan-Green.[36] On the other hand, Time and CNN observe the party as remaining centrist, positioning itself as a stark contrast to both the KMT and DPP.[37] [38]

Ko received 26.46% of the popular vote in the presidential election, placing his party in third place, and received 8 at-large legislative seats, gaining 3 seats in total.[39] The TPP had received its greatest result in these presidential and legislative elections since its inception thus far, preventing both KMT and DPP from obtaining a decisive legislative majority.[40]

Symbols and organization

The party charter also states that the party's formal abbreviated name in Chinese is 民眾黨; Mínzhòngdǎng. Prior to the party's founding, Chinese-language media referred to the party as 台民黨; Táimíndǎng.[41] The party colors are turquoise and white. The first signifies an end to the longtime blue–green political divide in Taiwan. The color white represents the "white force" of Ko's allies, a group that supports open and transparent government.[42]

In 2023, the New Homeland Think Tank Association, was established as a TPP-affiliated think tank.[43]

Election results

Legislative elections

!Election!Total seats won!Total votes!Share of votes!Changes!Party leader!Status!President
20201,588,80611.22%Ko Wen-je
20243,040,33422.07% 3 seatsKo Wen-je

Local elections

Notable members

Notes and References

  1. News: 民眾黨歲末年終記者會 . 我們的黨員人數已經超過了22,000人。 . 2023-12-31. 2024-01-01.
  2. Web site: Donovan Smith . Courtney . Taiwan People's Party positions itself for power politics . Taiwan News . 25 June 2023 . 23 April 2023 . TPP tries to get back to its stated roots, a centrist party between DPP and KMT..
  3. News: Strong . Matthew . Taipei City Mayor Ko Wen-je to launch new party . 31 July 2019 . Taiwan News . 31 July 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190731200716/https://www.taiwannews.com.tw/en/news/3755955 . 31 July 2019 . live .
  4. News: Liang . Pei-chi . Wang . Cheng-chung . Huang . Frances . Taipei mayor to establish political party . 31 July 2019 . Central News Agency . 31 July 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190731185544/http://focustaiwan.tw/news/aipl/201907310029.aspx . 31 July 2019 . live .
  5. News: Chen . Ching-min . Hetherington . William . Ko launches 'Taiwan people's party' . 2 August 2019 . 2 August 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190801211916/http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/front/archives/2019/08/02/2003719764 . 1 August 2019 . live .
  6. News: Teng . Pei-ju . Taipei mayor to form political party, seek legislative power . 1 August 2019 . Taiwan News . 1 August 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190801160827/https://www.taiwannews.com.tw/en/news/3756433 . 1 August 2019 . live .
  7. News: Huang . Tzu-ti . Taipei Mayor's choice of party name irks family of late activist . 1 August 2019 . Taiwan News . 1 August 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190801150119/https://www.taiwannews.com.tw/en/news/3756539 . 1 August 2019 . live .
  8. News: Strong . Matthew . The Chiang Wei-shui Cultural Foundation's Statement about Taipei City Mayor Ko Wen-je forming the "Taiwanese People's Party" . 2 August 2019 . Taiwan News . 1 August 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190802012311/https://www.taiwannews.com.tw/en/news/3756769 . 2 August 2019 . live .
  9. News: Lee . I-chia . Ko says party name should only change if it is illegal . 4 August 2019 . Taipei Times . 4 August 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190803211238/http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2019/08/04/2003719896 . 3 August 2019 . live .
  10. News: Hung . Jui-chin . Chin . Jonathan . Ko party petition clears legal step . 7 August 2019 . Taipei Times . 7 August 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190806194210/http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2019/08/07/2003720075 . 6 August 2019 . live .
  11. News: Everington . Keoni . Taipei Mayor founds Taiwan People's Party, elected chairman . 7 August 2019 . Taiwan News . 6 August 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190806170303/https://www.taiwannews.com.tw/en/news/3759723 . 6 August 2019 . live .
  12. News: Lee . I-chia . Ko elected chairman at TPP founding . 7 August 2019 . Taipei Times . 7 August 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190806210858/http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/front/archives/2019/08/07/2003720058 . 6 August 2019 . live .
  13. News: Liang . Pei-chi . Ku . Chuan . Chen . Yi-hsuan . Yeh . Joseph . Taiwan People's Party formed by Taipei mayor . 6 August 2019 . Central News Agency . 6 August 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190806113216/http://focustaiwan.tw/news/aipl/201908060012.aspx . 6 August 2019 . live .
  14. News: Hioe . Brian . What does the formation of the Taiwan People's Party mean for the 2020 elections? . 8 August 2019 . New Bloom . 6 August 2019.
  15. News: Liang . Pei-chi . Kao . Evelyn . Taipei mayor says his party will give voters more choices . 1 August 2019 . Central News Agency . 1 August 2019.
  16. News: Lee . I-chia . Ko also decides not to run for president . 18 September 2019 . Taipei Times . 18 September 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190918044931/http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2019/09/18/2003722499 . 18 September 2019 . live .
  17. News: Lee . I-chia . Ko planning to nominate 34 for legislator-at-large . 8 August 2019 . Taipei Times . 8 August 2019.
  18. News: Maxon . Ann . NPP to be most affected by Ko's new party: Huang . 8 August 2019 . Taipei Times . 8 August 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190807181023/http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2019/08/08/2003720132 . 7 August 2019 . live .
  19. News: Ku . Chuan . Chung . Yu-chen . New party announced by Taipei mayor a setback to DPP: scholar . 1 August 2019 . Central News Agency . 1 August 2019.
  20. News: Liang . Pei-chi . Yeh . Joseph . Ko's TPP nominates 8 regional legislative candidates for 2020 . 23 September 2019 . Central News Agency . 22 September 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190922170233/http://focustaiwan.tw/news/aipl/201909220008.aspx . 22 September 2019 . live .
  21. News: Lee . I-chia . TPP names nominees for legislative elections . 23 September 2019 . Taipei Times . 23 September 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190922170234/http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2019/09/23/2003722772 . 22 September 2019 . live .
  22. News: Lee . I-chia . New candidates join TPP as Ko unveils its goal . 21 October 2019 . Taipei Times . 21 October 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20191020220815/http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2019/10/21/2003724356 . 20 October 2019 . live .
  23. News: Liang . Pei-chi . Hsu . Elizabeth . 2020 Elections: Taipei labor chief tops TPP legislator-at-large list . 19 November 2019 . Central News Agency . 19 November 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20191119113005/https://focustaiwan.tw/news/aipl/201911190009.aspx . 19 November 2019 . live .
  24. News: Lee . I-chia . JAN. 11 ELECTIONS: TPP unveils legislator-at-large list with 29 names . 20 November 2019 . Taipei Times . 20 November 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20191119222349/http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2019/11/20/2003726181 . 19 November 2019 . live .
  25. News: Chen . Ching-min . 2020 Elections: TPP aims to become largest party: Ko . 29 December 2019 . Taipei Times . 28 December 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20191229043137/http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2019/12/28/2003728320 . 29 December 2019 . live .
  26. News: Lee . I-chia . 2020 Elections: Taiwan People's Party tops among 'third force' parties . 12 January 2020 . Taipei Times . 12 January 2020.
  27. News: Lee . I-chia . 2020 Elections: TPP 'revolution' is just beginning, Ko Wen-je says . 13 January 2020 . Taipei Times . 13 January 2020.
  28. News: Pan . Jason . 2023-11-25 . KMT, TPP picks for VP reveal intentions: critics . Taipei Times.
  29. News: 2023-11-24 . 鄭惠元 . 快訊／柯文哲確定副手吳欣盈 11點將一起登記參選 . zh-Hant-TW . 2024-01-14.
  30. Web site: 18 November 2023 . Taiwan opposition parties deadlocked over presidential candidate . 14 January 2024 . . https://web.archive.org/web/20231118035638/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/nov/18/taiwan-opposition-parties-deadlocked-over-presidential-candidate . 18 November 2023.
  31. News: Sean . Lin . Election 2024/TPP's Ko registers presidential candidacy, names lawmaker Wu as running mate . 24 November 2023 . Central News Agency . 24 November 2023.
  32. News: Hioe . Brian . KMT's Han Kuo-yu Is Taiwan's New Legislative Speaker . 2 February 2024 . 28 May 2024 . The Diplomat. ...the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP), a pan-Blue third party, came to hold the crucial balance of power in the legislature...During the vice presidential and presidential debates, both the TPP and KMT candidates emphasized that the two parties would seek to work together, as fellow pan-Blue parties. This spirit of cooperation remained intact even though the two parties had failed to successfully negotiate a joint presidential ticket...the TPP and KMT were never able to arrive at a joint ticket because neither Ko nor Hou was willing to become the vice presidential candidate of the other.... https://web.archive.org/web/20240206015602/https://thediplomat.com/2024/02/kmts-han-kuo-yu-is-taiwans-new-legislative-speaker/ . 6 February 2024.
  33. News: 2023-11-26 . 315 legislative candidates have registered . Taipei Times . Central News Agency.
  34. Web site: 李俊毅 . 整理包/ 2024立委大戰 藍綠白參選名單、選區一次看 . 中天新聞網 . 2023-09-14 . zh-Hant-TW.
  35. News: Ko Wen-je: the provocative outsider who could tip Taiwan election balance . Hawkings . Amy . The Guardian . 2024-01-10.
  36. News: Hioe . Brian . Nachman . Lev . From Green to Blue: The Political History of Ko Wen-je . 28 November 2023 . 29 May 2024 . . ...An incident that crystallized the growing pan-Green consensus against Ko was his defense of his exchanges with China – even after student demonstrators protesting events held as part of the exchanges were attacked on the campus of National Taiwan University by gangsters with ties to pro-unification groups in September 2017...By 2018, Ko was seen as more pan-Blue than pan-Green...The TPP branded itself as being above Blue-Green politics. Despite such claims, Ko recruited heavily from the pan-Blue established politicians to form his new party. His number two and the TPP’s candidate to succeed Ko as Taipei mayor in 2022, Huang Shan-shan, was even previously a member of the pro-unification New Party... . https://web.archive.org/web/20231128142200/https://thediplomat.com/2023/11/from-green-to-blue-the-political-history-of-ko-wen-je/ . 28 November 2023.
  37. Web site: Campbell . Charlie . Taiwan Wants Peace and Economic Stability—Now It Could Hinge on a High-Stakes Choice . Time . 14 June 2024 . 10 January 2024 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240613105651/https://time.com/6553749/taiwan-election-economy-china-democracy-choice . 13 June 2024 . live . According to last permitted polling before the vote, the China-skeptic incumbent Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) of Vice-President William Lai holds a slender lead over the more Beijing-friendly Nationalists, or KMT, with the upstart centrist Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) in third place..
  38. Web site: de Acosta . Rosa . de Shveda . Krystina . Chacon . Marco . A visual guide to Taiwan's high-stakes presidential election . CNN . 14 June 2024 . 12 January 2024 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240221231842/https://edition.cnn.com/2024/01/12/world/taiwan-president-election-dg-intl-hnk/index.html . 21 February 2024 . live. Taiwan People's Party (TPP), a centrist alternative party founded only in 2019..
  39. Web site: 第16任總統副總統及第11屆立法委員選舉 . 中央選舉委員會 .
  40. News: Hsiao . Alison . 2024-01-13 . No party gets majority in Legislature; KMT wins most seats . Focus Taiwan.
  41. Web site: Fan . Shih-ping . 15 August 2019 . TPP off to a disappointing start . 16 August 2019 . Taipei Times.
  42. News: Huang . Tzu-ti . 16 September 2019 . Taiwan People's Party website hacked in cyberattack . 16 September 2019 . Taiwan News.
  43. News: Huang . Ching-yu . Madjar . Kayleigh . 21 January 2023 . Ko to visit US for TPP, head think tank . 21 January 2023 . Taipei Times.
  44. Web site: Wang . Chao-yu . Liu . Kuan-ting . Wang . Hung-kuo . Chiang . Yi-ching . Former National Immigration Agency head to leave KMT for TPP . . 31 May 2020 . 31 May 2020.

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