The Tangwai movement, or simply Tangwai, was a loosely knit political movement in Taiwan in the mid-1970s and early 1980s. Although the ruling Kuomintang (KMT) had allowed contested elections for a small number of seats in the Legislative Yuan, opposition parties were still forbidden. As a result, many opponents of the KMT, officially classified as independents, ran and were elected as members "outside the party." The movement was at times tolerated and other times suppressed, the latter being the case particularly after the Kaohsiung Incident of 1979. Members of the movement eventually formed the Democratic Progressive Party, which after opposition political parties were legalized, contested elections and won the Presidency with candidate Chen Shui-bian, ending decades of single party rule in Taiwan.
Tangwai (independent) Taiwanese-born politician Wu San-lien (2L) celebrated his landslide victory (65.5%) in Taipei City's first mayoral election in January 1951 with supporters.
The Kuomintang (KMT), also referred to as the Guomindang (GMD), the Nationalist Party of China (NPC) or the Chinese Nationalist Party (CNP), is a major political party in the Republic of China, initially based on the Chinese mainland and then in Taiwan since 1949. The KMT is a centre-right to right-wing party and the largest in the Pan-Blue Coalition. Its primary rival is the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and its allies in the Pan-Green Coalition. As of 2024, the KMT is the largest single party in the Legislative Yuan. The current chairman is Eric Chu.
The KMT reveres its founder, Sun Yat-sen, as the "Father of the Nation"
The Revolutionary Army attacking Nanjing in 1911
Venue of the 1st National Congress of Kuomintang in 1924
Chiang Kai-shek, leader of the Kuomintang after Sun's death in 1925