Smith, Mitchell P2019-04-272019-04-272011https://hdl.handle.net/11244/318726This dissertation investigates and examine how the Kuomintang hasmanaged to weather critical challenges presented by the liberalization anddemocratization of Taiwan, while maintaining its political presence andconsequently reconsolidating its crushing political dominance by recapturing thepresidential seat and obtaining the most votes any presidential candidate in thehistory of Taiwan has ever captured.The Kuomintang is anything but a pesky insect that refuses to go away.The Kuomintang is a tightly run, self-sustaining, and highly disciplined politicalmachine that is deeply entrenched in all aspects of Taiwanese society throughinstitutions at both the national and local level, as well as through differentdimensions of institutions in the form of the five yuans, electoral rules, and localbureaucracies and representative offices. These institutions are essential to theKuomintang's survival in Taiwan. This mutually engaging and interactiveinstitutional relationship has helped sustain the Kuomintang for more than acentury.The Kuomintang's astonishing political success is a result of thecollaborative, interlocking nature of national institutions, and most importantly,the Kuomintang's deep entrenchment in local institutions, along with theKuomintang's cultivation of clientele and paternalistic social relationships.218 pagesapplication.pdfTaiwan--Politics and government--2000-Taiwan--Politics and government--1988-2000text