Progressivism Progressivism is a Left-right political spectrum, left-leaning political philosophy and Reformism, reform political movement, movement that seeks to advance the human condition through social reform. Adherents hold that progressivism has unive ...

is a major political movement in Taiwanese politics. There are several progressive

political parties in Taiwan This article lists the political parties in the Republic of China (Taiwan) from 7 December 1949. The organization of political parties in Taiwan is governed by the Political Parties Act, enacted on 6 December 2017. The Political Parties Act def ...

, but most are associated with the

Pan-Green Coalition The Pan-Green coalition, Pan-Green force or Pan-Green groups is a nationalist political coalition in Taiwan (Republic of China), consisting of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), Taiwan Statebuilding Party (TSP), Social Democratic Party ...

led by the

Democratic Progressive Party The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) is a centre to centre-left Taiwanese nationalist political party in Taiwan. As the dominant party in the Pan-Green Coalition, one of the two main political camps in Taiwan, the DPP is currently the ...

(DPP).

Progressive parties in Taiwan

The

(DPP) is a

centre-left Centre-left politics is the range of left-wing political ideologies that lean closer to the political centre. Ideologies commonly associated with it include social democracy, social liberalism, progressivism, and green politics. Ideas commo ...

social liberal and progressive party in Taiwan. It grew out of the

Tangwai movement 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 Legis ...

formed in the 1970s to oppose the ruling

Kuomintang The Kuomintang (KMT) is a major political party in the Republic of China (Taiwan). It was the one party state, sole ruling party of the country Republic of China (1912-1949), during its rule from 1927 to 1949 in Mainland China until Retreat ...

. As of the 2020 legislative elections, the DPP holds a majority of 61 legislative seats. The

Taiwan Solidarity Union The Taiwan Solidarity Party (TSP) is a political party in Taiwan which advocates Taiwan independence, and is affiliated with the Taiwanese localization movement. It was officially founded on 12 August 2001 as the Taiwan Solidarity Union (TSU ...

(TSU) is a

left-wing Left-wing politics describes the range of Ideology#Political ideologies, political ideologies that support and seek to achieve social equality and egalitarianism, often in opposition to social hierarchy either as a whole or of certain social ...

progressive party characterised primarily by its

Taiwanese nationalism Taiwanese nationalism () is a nationalism, nationalist political movement that promotes the cultural identity and unity of Taiwanese people as a nation. In recent decades, it consists of cultural or political movements that seek to resolve the ...

and derives its membership from both the

's former moderate and Taiwan-oriented fringe and DPP supporters disgruntled by the party's moderation on the question of Taiwanese sovereignty. Its progressive character is questionable, although it is part of the DPP's pro-

Taiwan independence Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of Chi ...

Pan-Green alliance. The TSU lost all of its seats in the 2016 elections. The

New Power Party The New Power Party (NPP) is a political party in Taiwan formed in early 2015. The party emerged from the Sunflower Student Movement in 2014, and advocates for universal human rights, civil liberties, civil and political freedom, political libe ...

(NPP) is a progressive party which aims to rewrite the Constitution of Republic of China and to carry out Taiwanization.New Power Party's proposals
/ref> The NPP won three seats in the 2020 legislative election, but lost all the seats in 2024. The modern liberal parties in Taiwan are mostly associated with

, as well as liberal positions on social issues, such as support for

LGBT rights Rights affecting lesbian, Gay men, gay, Bisexuality, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) people vary greatly by country or jurisdiction—encompassing everything from the legal recognition of same-sex marriage to the Capital punishmen ...

and abolishing the

death penalty Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty and formerly called judicial homicide, is the state-sanctioned killing of a person as punishment for actual or supposed misconduct. The sentence ordering that an offender be punished in s ...

. However, progressivism and social liberalism in Taiwan have not easily extended to extensive labor rights, or more liberal support for immigrant rights.

List of progressive parties

Represented in the Legislative Yuan

(founded in 1986)

Not represented in the Legislative Yuan

* Peasant Party (founded in 1989) *

Green Party Taiwan Green Party Taiwan is a political party in Taiwan established on 25 January 1996. Although the party is sympathetic to Taiwanese nationalism and shares a number of centre-left positions with the Pan-Green Coalition, the party emphasizes campai ...

(founded in 1996) *

(founded in 2001) * People's Democratic Party (founded in 2011) *

Trees Party The Trees Party () was a minor political party in Taiwan. The core ideology of the party was environmentalism, and it was commonly identified as a "third force" party belonging to neither the Pan-Blue or Pan-Green Coalitions. The party was forme ...

(founded in 2014) *

Social Democratic Party The name Social Democratic Party or Social Democrats has been used by many political parties in various countries around the world. Such parties are most commonly aligned to social democracy as their political ideology. Active parties Form ...

(founded in 2015) *

Free Taiwan Party The Free Taiwan Party ( zh, t=自由台灣黨) is a pro-independence political party in Taiwan. It was founded by Pan-Green activist Tsay Ting-kuei on 17 April 2015, and was registered as a political party on 1 May 2015. The party's main cla ...

(founded in 2015)

Formerly represented in the Legislative Yuan

Taiwan Independence Party The Taiwan Independence Party (TAIP; ), also known as the Taiwan Nation Party, was a political party from 1996 to 2020 in Taiwan. It was usually associated with the Pan-Green Coalition and supported Taiwan independence. History Disappointed ...

(1996–2020) *

Taiwan Statebuilding Party The Taiwan Statebuilding Party (TSP; zh, t=台灣基進, p=Táiwān Jījìn, poj=Tâi-oân Ki-chìn) is a political party in the Republic of China (Taiwan). The party was established in 2016 as Taiwan Radical Wings. The party is considered a ra ...

(founded in 2016) *