The election of the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) Central Committee members concluded not long ago. According to the KMT, 39 younger party members were elected, compared with 26 in the previous election, accounting for about 19 percent of the 210 committee members.
Moreover, some middle-aged politicians were elected, including legislators Wayne Chiang (蔣萬安), 39, and Johnny Chiang (江啟臣), 45, as well as Sean Lien (連勝文), 47, and Kao Su-po (高思博), 49, who both intend to stand in local government elections next year.
A KMT spokesman might have exaggerated the outcome, saying it reflected how the party is “gradually getting younger,” but perhaps there is the possibility of a rising younger generation inside the party.
However, it remains to be seen whether such a force could reverse the traditional thinking of KMT Chairman Wu Den-yih (吳敦義) and the old guard and become a dominant force, as they face several obstacles.
First, as President Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) approval rating continued to plummet, she was forced to save herself by appointing former Tainan mayor William Lai (賴清德) as premier.
Tsai is clearly taking a gamble in which she and Lai will rise or fall together, in the hope that it will reverse the unfavorable situation facing her administration and improve the Democratic Progressive Party’s (DPP) chances in next year’s elections.
Her administration’s difficulties present an opportunity to the KMT. The network of factions within the party, which had fallen apart, is now coming back to life as they try to get close to Wu, as if another power transfer was about to occur and they were about to re-enter the corridors of power.
As these traditional conservative forces take credit for Wu, it is unlikely that he would ignore them and instead support rising middle-aged or younger party members, allowing them to dominate the party’s reform process.
Next, a number of the KMT’s active younger and middle-aged politicians are “second-generation politicians” who have long benefited from the power and connections of their parents.
Not all of the party’s second-generation politicians rely on their parents, but they have been influenced by that generation’s traditional ideologies and might avoid hurting their parents’ connections, making it difficult for them to push for party reform.
If newcomers who lack money and connections really want to shine, they will have to rely on the second-generation politicians to take them along for the ride and offer them more exposure.
However, after finally getting the chance to be heard thanks to the second-generation politicians, they will owe them a debt of gratitude and will therefore be unlikely to push for drastic reform.
Finally, looking at Wu’s personnel philosophy and his own personality, he seldom takes public opinion into consideration when making decisions.
For example, when former KMT chairwoman Hung Hsiu-chu (洪秀柱) unexpectedly stepped down, Wu fell short of public expectations, as he refused to take over the chairmanship a few weeks early. Besides, he is extremely confident in himself.
How could a self-proclaimed brilliant party chairman give priority to the opinions of young or middle-aged party members when pushing for reform?
Is the party’s policy of putting middle-aged people in important positions while cultivating younger members going to exist in name only? We will have to wait and see what happens.
The rising number of young Central Committee members is an opportunity for the aging KMT. By contrast, the DPP has already completed a generational transition and is dominated by middle-aged politicians, while almost 70 percent of the New Power Party’s (NPP) top officials are under the age of 40.
The KMT is far behind them: Young party members only account for one-fifth of the total number of Central Committee seats.
Today, both the DPP and the NPP are actively attracting young voters by nominating younger candidates in elections.
If the KMT continues to be dominated by the old-fashioned, traditional politicians who were responsible for the party’s loss of power, while the opinions of young people are used merely for window dressing and to brighten the image of a “brilliant” party chairman, then one cannot but wonder if the party will ever make a comeback.
Niu Tse-hsun is a professor at Chinese Culture University’s Department of Advertising.
Translated by Eddy Chang
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