ABSTRACT
This chapter considers the changing patterns of politics at the local level. Although Taiwan’s national level elections were only fully introduced in the early 1990s, local elections had been conducted since the late 1940s. The chapter thus focuses on the KMT local factional relationships after martial law was lifted. Although the KMT tried periodically to reduce its dependency on local factions, they became increasingly influential at the national level. Electoral patterns at the local level stand in stark contrast to those at the national level, with the KMT remaining the dominant force in grassroots politics. The last section will assess the impact of changes of ruling parties, electoral and administrative reform on local politics.
