沒有國民黨就沒有中國, Without the Kuomintang there would be no China, A Republic of China Story

Yeah? USSR OTL supplied and aid both sides? With the civil war over the Soviet would want a friendly China besides they can bond over anti colonialism.
Both sides are pragmatic enough to look the other way and form a somewhat trade beneficial relationship
The KMT and the Soviet Union actually had pretty good relations overall so this doesn't really mean much tbh

Okay, fair points. Guess that's my lack of knowledge in this area talking.
 
Okay, fair points. Guess that's my lack of knowledge in this area talking.
Tbf KMT and USSR relationship isn’t gonna be all sunshine and roses (considering how Stalin literally strong arm Chiang kai shek to acknowledge Mongolia is independent and Soviet incursions in Xinjiang in the past). But yeah like the dude above me is a magnitude better than Mao relationship with the soviet.
 
Yeah, it's a sorta ironic fact that Sino-Soviet relations were better with the KMT than than under Mao. It's definitely not something you'd expect, so it's all good.
Yeah, in the 60s the KGB was even working with the KMT.
I mean KMT could like ask the soviets for aid? Is not like Chiang particularly care where the money flow
He certainly can. The next chapter is a short one but it does mention the Soviets.
 
十, Transitions of Power
In 1952, US President Harry Truman sought a third term as President. Harry Truman was the last person who was legally allowed to do that. Due to the 22nd Amendment to the United States Constitution, no one after him was allowed to serve more than two terms. There was some opposition to him at the Democratic Convention from progressives, Dixiecrats, and people who didn’t want him to run for a third term, but he was renominated. When he learned that the Republicans nominated Senator Robert Taft, he felt confident that he would win. But many Americans were tired of 20 years of Democrat rule and were looking for something different. Taft defeated Truman 51-48% in the popular vote and 353-178 in the electoral college. Truman lost long time Democrat states such as Texas, Virginia, and Florida. The conservative isolationist Robert Taft was inaugurated in 1953 but did very little as president because he died later that year. He was succeeded by his Vice President, William F. Knowland.

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(The 3 presidents of 1953, from left to right: Harry S. Truman, Robert A. Taft, and William F. Knowland)

Joseph Stalin, the man that some viewed as a hero and others viewed as the worst person to ever live, died in 1953. His successor was Georgy Malenkov. Even though Malenkov defended the legacy of Stalin, he was a much more lenient ruler than his predecessor. He would criticize some of the excesses of the Stalin years, and upon his ascension to power he released some gulag inmates. The next few years would see a fierce rivalry between Georgy Malenkov and Nikita Khrushchev. There was initially some hope that Malenkov could ease tensions between the West and the USSR. He suggested a united neutral Germany. He also was an opponent of nuclear weapons. With the United States being led by Robert Taft, it seemed like the perfect opportunity to end the Cold War. But it was not to be. By the end of the year, he turned his attention to forming an anti-imperialist bloc with China and India.

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(Georgy Malenkov)
 
Interesting how without the Korean War Truman tries to run for a third term. Also no Ike as President. Maybe Knowland will have Eisenhower in a cabinet position? Looking forward to seeing how the Cold War will progress in this different TL :)
 
Why did Truman decide to run for a third term? And if Taft got the GOP nomination, does that mean Eisenhower didn't even run?
Truman planned to run for a third term OTL, even with his immense unpopularity due to the War. He only backed out due to an extremely poor showing in the New Hampshire caucus. However, not only without the Korean War, but also with China not becoming communist, Truman would be FAR more popular than OTL, and would actually have a fighting chance. Though, now I have a question for the author…..

….. why doesn't Eisenhower run? His candidacy OTL was based on fears that Taft would pull the US from NATO, and had little if anything to do with the situation in Asia. So I’m a bit shocked to see him not run here.

Not saying I consider it a bad choice-a Taft presidency isn't something you see very often on this board, and I'm curious to see where it'll go. But I'm just curious as to why you chose Ike not to run.

(also I do personally believe that in this situation, Truman would beat Taft. But I won't fault the author for the decision, but I just think ITTL the stars align perfectly for Truman to squeak out a close one)
 
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Deleted member 2186

In 1952, US President Harry Truman sought a third term as President. Harry Truman was the last person who was legally allowed to do that. Due to the 22nd Amendment to the United States Constitution, no one after him was allowed to serve more than two terms. There was some opposition to him at the Democratic Convention from progressives, Dixiecrats, and people who didn’t want him to run for a third term, but he was renominated. When he learned that the Republicans nominated Senator Robert Taft, he felt confident that he would win. But many Americans were tired of 20 years of Democrat rule and were looking for something different. Taft defeated Truman 51-48% in the popular vote and 353-178 in the electoral college. Truman lost long time Democrat states such as Texas, Virginia, and Florida. The conservative isolationist Robert Taft was inaugurated in 1953 but did very little as president because he died later that year. He was succeeded by his Vice President, William F. Knowland.

View attachment 716643View attachment 716640View attachment 716642
(The 3 presidents of 1953, from left to right: Harry S. Truman, Robert A. Taft, and William F. Knowland)

Joseph Stalin, the man that some viewed as a hero and others viewed as the worst person to ever live, died in 1953. His successor was Georgy Malenkov. Even though Malenkov defended the legacy of Stalin, he was a much more lenient ruler than his predecessor. He would criticize some of the excesses of the Stalin years, and upon his ascension to power he released some gulag inmates. The next few years would see a fierce rivalry between Georgy Malenkov and Nikita Khrushchev. There was initially some hope that Malenkov could ease tensions between the West and the USSR. He suggested a united neutral Germany. He also was an opponent of nuclear weapons. With the United States being led by Robert Taft, it seemed like the perfect opportunity to end the Cold War. But it was not to be. By the end of the year, he turned his attention to forming an anti-imperialist bloc with China and India.

View attachment 716644
(Georgy Malenkov)
So no Eisenhower as president that is surprising.

So where is MacArthur, as he did not try to nuke China during the Korean War, i assume he also would try to run for office.
 
Truman planned to run for a third term OTL, even with his immense unpopularity due to the War. He only backed out due to an extremely poor showing in the New Hampshire caucus. However, not only without the Korean War, but also with China not becoming communist, Truman would be FAR more popular than OTL, and would actually have a fighting chance. Though, now I have a question for the author…..

….. why doesn't Eisenhower run? His candidacy OTL was based on fears that Taft would pull the US from NATO, and had little if anything to do with the situation in Asia. So I’m a bit shocked to see him not run here.

Not saying I consider it a bad choice-a Taft presidency isn't something you see very often on this board, and I'm curious to see where it'll go. But I'm just curious as to why you chose Ike not to run.

(also I do personally believe that in this situation, Truman would beat Taft. But I won't fault the author for the decision, but I just think ITTL the stars align perfectly for Truman to squeak out a close one)
So no Eisenhower as president that is surprising.

So where is MacArthur, as he did not try to nuke China during the Korean War, i assume he also would try to run for office.
Eisenhower decides not to run. ITTL Taft's views certainly aren't mainstream, but they aren't considered as radical as they were OTL, especially among Republicans. That gives Eisenhower less of a motivation to run. MacArthur enters the race for the Republican nomination late, after Taft already is the front runner. At the deadlocked convention, Earl Warren backs Taft and Taft chooses Warren's friend William Knowland as VP. Earl Warren's helps Taft with moderates and liberals while Knowland helps those who are concerned about Taft's foreign policy. The support of those two Californians is critical to his victory. I absolutely agree with you that Truman could have pulled it off, and I considered having him win, but I think this story works better with Taft winning.

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As for Taft, he still ends up dying in 1953, though some of what he does policy-wise will be discussed.
 

Deleted member 2186

Eisenhower decides not to run. ITTL Taft's views certainly aren't mainstream, but they aren't considered as radical as they were OTL, especially among Republicans. That gives Eisenhower less of a motivation to run. MacArthur enters the race for the Republican nomination late, after Taft already is the front runner. At the deadlocked convention, Earl Warren backs Taft and Taft chooses Warren's friend William Knowland as VP. Earl Warren's helps Taft with moderates and liberals while Knowland helps those who are concerned about Taft's foreign policy. The support of those two Californians is critical to his victory. I absolutely agree with you that Truman could have pulled it off, and I considered having him win, but I think this story works better with Taft winning.

qXCXuPV.png


As for Taft, he still ends up dying in 1953, though some of what he does policy-wise will be discussed.
Thanks for the answer.
 
Eisenhower decides not to run. ITTL Taft's views certainly aren't mainstream, but they aren't considered as radical as they were OTL, especially among Republicans. That gives Eisenhower less of a motivation to run. MacArthur enters the race for the Republican nomination late, after Taft already is the front runner. At the deadlocked convention, Earl Warren backs Taft and Taft chooses Warren's friend William Knowland as VP. Earl Warren's helps Taft with moderates and liberals while Knowland helps those who are concerned about Taft's foreign policy. The support of those two Californians is critical to his victory. I absolutely agree with you that Truman could have pulled it off, and I considered having him win, but I think this story works better with Taft winning.

qXCXuPV.png


As for Taft, he still ends up dying in 1953, though some of what he does policy-wise will be discussed.
I see, makes sense. Definitely curious to see where this will lead.
 
十一, The Presidential Election of 1954
Chiang Kai-shek was loved by many and hated by many. He could take solace in the fact that the majority of the Kuomintang backed him for President. Presidential elections in the Republic of China were decided not by the popular vote, but by the National Assembly [1]. Just like presidential elections, the Republic of China Constitution in 1947 stipulated that National Assembly elections would occur every six years. In 1953, the Kuomintang once again won an overwhelming majority of seats in the National Assembly. This meant that any serious challenge to Chiang Kai-shek’s reelection the following year would have to come from within the Kuomintang. There would be a high-profile challenger from within the KMT, Vice President Li Zongren. Li Zongren was supported by members of the National Assembly from his native Guangxi Province and also by people who didn’t particularly like Chiang Kai-shek. He and Chiang were not on the best of terms, and Chiang believed that Li had been too conciliatory towards the Communists.

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(Li Zongren)

Chiang Kai-shek overwhelmingly won the presidential vote with over 80% of delegates supporting him. This came as a surprise to no one, including Li Zongren and his supporters (Li didn’t actually seek out the presidency, he was merely nominated by a group of anti-Chiang politicians). Just as in 1948, the election for vice president was much more competitive. And just like in 1948, Chiang Kai-shek supported Sun Fo over Li Zongren. General Yan Xishan was a serious contender for vice president as well. There were also two minor candidates. There was Lei Chen, a pro-Democracy member of the Legislative Yuan from Zhejiang and Xu Fulin, a member of the Legislative Yuan and leader of the China Democratic Socialist Party. With the exception of Xu Fulin, all candidates were affiliated with the Kuomintang.

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(Xu Fulin)

On the first ballot, Sun Fo came in first place with 1,311 votes. Li Zongren came in second with 882. Yan Xishan received 460 votes, Xu Fulin received 207 votes, and Lei Chen received 85 votes. On the second ballot, much of Yan Xishan’s support went to Sun Fo. Sun Fo received 1,552 votes, 19 more than were required to win. He would become the new Vice President in May 1954. Chen Lifu, Vice President of the Legislative Yuan, would become the new President of the Legislative Yuan. Li Zongren had been defeated, but he was not retiring from politics. He returned to Guangxi where he began to plot his way back into power. He had plenty of supporters across the country, including the warlord Bai Chongxi. Meanwhile, further west, Warlord Ma Bufang was put in command of an invasion force.

Presidential Election of 1954
Votes
Chiang Kai-shek (KMT-Zhejiang)2,252 (80.5%)
Li Zongren (KMT-Guangxi)582 (19.1%)

Vice Presidential Election of 1954
First RoundSecond Round
Sun Fo (KMT-Guangdong)1,311 (43.1%)1552 (51.0%)
Li Zongren (KMT-Guangxi)882 (29.0%)998 (32.8%)
Yan Xishan (KMT-Shanxi)460 (15.1%)325 (10.7%)
Xu Fulin (CDSP-Guangdong)207 (6.8%)170 (5.6%)
Lei Chen (KMT-Zhejiang)85 (2.8%)

1: Basically an electoral college that has some other powers like amending the constitution.
 
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The next chapter will feature someone who is still alive today, something that never happened in my last two TLs. This person is very famous.
 
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