People First Party (Taiwan) facts for kids

Quick facts for kids People First Party 親民黨
Leader	James Soong
Founded	31 March 2000
Split from	Kuomintang
Headquarters	Taipei, Taiwan
Ideology	Liberal conservatism
Political position	Centre to centre-right
National affiliation	Pan-Blue Coalition
Colors	Orange
Legislative Yuan	0 / 113
Municipal mayors	0 / 6
Magistrates/mayors	0 / 16
Councilors	2 / 912
Township/city mayors	0 / 204
Party flag

The People First Party (PFP) is a political party in Taiwan. It is often described as a centrist or centre-right party, meaning its ideas are usually in the middle or slightly to the right of the political spectrum.

The party was started by James Soong in March 2000. This happened after he tried to become president in the January 2000 election but didn't win. Before this, Soong was part of another big party called the Kuomintang (KMT). He was asked to leave the KMT when he decided to run for president on his own.

In the 2001 election for the Legislative Yuan (Taiwan's parliament), the PFP became the third-largest party. Later, in the 2004 presidential election, the KMT and PFP worked together. Their candidates, Lien Chan and James Soong, almost won but lost to President Chen Shui-bian.

The PFP lost many seats in the 2008 election. However, they gained some back in the 2012 election. James Soong ran for president again in 2012 and 2016. In 2020, he ran for president one last time. The PFP also lost all its seats in the Legislative Yuan in the 2020 election.

How the People First Party Started

The PFP was created by James Soong and his supporters in 2000. This happened after he didn't win the presidential election that year. James Soong used to be a member of the Kuomintang (KMT) party. But he was removed from the KMT when he decided to run for president independently.

James Soong is the leader of the PFP. He has a very strong influence on the party's decisions. The name of the party, People First (親民), comes from old Chinese ideas about caring for people.

Working with Other Parties

The PFP has a close but sometimes difficult relationship with the Kuomintang (KMT). They are both part of a group called the Pan-Blue Coalition. Because the PFP, like the New Party, grew out of the KMT, they often try to win over the same voters. This means the KMT and PFP have to both compete and work together. This makes politics in Taiwan quite interesting.

Sometimes, both parties would have candidates running in the same election. But as the election got closer, the party whose candidate was less popular would quietly step aside. This even led to times when the PFP or KMT campaigned against their own candidates. This caused some unhappiness within the parties.

To avoid problems like this, which helped Democratic Progressive Party candidate Chen Shui-bian win the presidency in 2000, James Soong ran as vice-president with KMT leader Lien Chan in the 2004 election.

After losing the mayoral election in Taipei in December 2006, James Soong said he would stop being involved in politics. At that time, the PFP wasn't sure what its future would be. They even thought about joining with the KMT. After many talks, the PFP and KMT decided not to merge.

James Soong's Presidential Campaigns

In September 2011, James Soong ran for president for the first time as the PFP candidate. He chose a professor named Ruey-Shiung Lin to be his running mate for the 2012 election. They gathered enough signatures to be on the ballot.

Some people worried that the PFP running would split the votes of the Pan-Blue Coalition. This had happened in the 2000 election, which helped the DPP win. But Soong said his campaign was serious. On election day, the Soong-Lin team received 2.77% of the votes. Ma Ying-jeou of the KMT won the election. In the same election for parliament, the PFP won three seats.

Soong ran for president again in 2016 and 2020. In 2016, he got 12.84% of the votes. In 2020, he received 4.26% of the votes. The PFP kept its seats in parliament in 2016. However, in 2020, the PFP did not get enough votes to have any seats in the Legislative Yuan. Before the 2020 election results, James Soong announced that this would be his last presidential campaign. This made people wonder about the future of the party.

What the People First Party Believes In

The People First Party is seen as a centrist or centre-right political party. This means their political ideas are usually in the middle or slightly to the right.

The PFP has clear goals for how Taiwan should relate to mainland China and other countries. They want Taiwan (Republic of China) to:

• Join more international groups.
• Promote Chinese culture around the world.
• Encourage economic and cultural exchanges between Taiwan and mainland China.

The PFP generally supports the idea of Chinese unification (Taiwan becoming part of China). They are strongly against Taiwan independence (Taiwan becoming a completely separate country).

Election Results

Presidential Elections

Election	Candidate	Running mate	Total votes	Share of votes	Outcome
2000	James Soong Chu-yu	Chang Chau-hsiung	4,664,932	36.8%	Defeated
2004	Lien Chan ( KMT)	James Soong Chu-yu	6,423,906	49.8%	Defeated
2012	James Soong Chu-yu	Lin Ruey-shiung	369,588	2.77%	Defeated
2016	James Soong Chu-yu	Hsu Hsin-ying ( MKT)	1,576,861	12.84%	Defeated
2020	James Soong Chu-yu	Sandra Yu	608,590	4.26%	Defeated

Legislative Elections

Election	Total seats won	Total votes	Share of votes	Seat changes	Election leader	Status	President
2001	46 / 225	1,917,836	20.3%	29 seats	James Soong Chu-yu	3rd Party	Chen Shui-bian
2004	34 / 225	1,350,613	14.78%	12 seats	James Soong Chu-yu	3rd Party
2008	1 / 113	28,254	0.3%	33 seats	James Soong Chu-yu	4th Party
						4th Party	Ma Ying-jeou
2012	3 / 113	722,089	5.49%	2 seats	James Soong Chu-yu	4th Party
2016	3 / 113	794,838	6.52%	0 seats	James Soong Chu-yu	4th Party	Tsai Ing-wen
2020	0 / 113	518,921	3.66%	3 seats	James Soong Chu-yu	Did not represent
2024	0 / 113	69,817	0.51%	0 seats	James Soong Chu-yu	Did not represent	Lai Ching-te

Local Elections

National Assembly Elections

Election	Total seats won	Total votes	Share of votes	Changes	Election leader	Status	President
2005	18 / 300	236,716	6.11%	18 seats	James Soong Chu-yu	4th Party	Chen Shui-bian

See also

In Spanish: Partido Primero el Pueblo para niños

• Politics of the Republic of China
• Elections in Taiwan
• List of political parties in Taiwan