In December 1983, elections were held for the National Assembly, the body that elected the President of China. Chiang Ching-kuo was confident that he would win. He did, however do some things to boost his popularity. For one, he released Li Ao and most other political prisoners. He also authorized new infrastructure projects, and his presidency would see China’s railway network greatly expanded. He wanted his victory to be big, partly to increase his standing within his own party. Authoritarian forces within the KMT had been discussing possible challengers to Chiang since 1980. However, no one could be found who would dare to torpedo their political career in order to challenge Chiang Ching-kuo. Had any other man, even Chiang’s brother, had attempted to push through democratic reforms, there would have been more pushback. At the Kuomintang leadership election in 1983, a handful of delegates voted for Vice President Wang Sheng as a protest vote.
Voters could be confident that a vote for a KMT delegate to the National Assembly was a vote for Chiang Ching-kuo. Chiang Ching-kuo’s 1978 interparty opponent, journalist Lee Tze-chung, was the candidate for the China Democratic Socialist Party. The China Youth Party candidate for President was historian and Legislator Tao Yuanzhen of Zhejiang. This was the first time the party had ran a candidate for president. Hu Qiuyuan, member of the Legislative Yuan from Sichuan, was the New Democratic League’s candidate. Fei Hsi-ping, independent candidate for president in 1978, was the candidate of the Liberal Party. There were also independents running for National Assembly seats, often times expressing their support for one of the party nominees. The Kuomintang won in a landslide, with over 60% of the vote and nearly two-thirds of National Assembly seats.
Every KMT member, and a handful of non-KMT members, voted for Chiang Ching-kuo. He won on the first round with 2,012 votes. For Vice President, the KMT candidate was the incumbent, Wang Sheng of Jiangxi. The CDSP ran former Taipei Mayor Henry Kao from Taiwan. The CYP ran Rong Yiren of Jiangsu, a businessman who had previously supported the KMT but had switched parties. The New Democratic League ran sociologist Fei Xiaotong of Hebei. The Liberal Party ran lawyer Gao Wenbin of Jiangsu. Some members of the KMT supported Education Minister Lee Huan of Hubei, who was seen as more pro-democracy than Wang Sheng. Wang Sheng won on the first ballot, but it was closer than in 1978.
| Votes |
Chiang Ching-kuo (KMT-Zhejiang) | 2,012 (66.1%) |
Lee Tze-chung (CDSP-Guangdong) | 418 (13.7%) |
Tao Yuanzhen (CYP-Zhejiang) | 371 (12.2%) |
Hu Qiuyuan (NDL-Sichuan) | 143 (4.7%) |
Fei Hsi-ping (LP-Liaoning) | 101 (3.3%) |
Vice Presidential Election of 1984
| Votes |
Wang Sheng (KMT-Jiangxi) | 1,697 (55.7%) |
Henry Kao (CDSP-Taiwan) | 418 (13.7%) |
Rong Yiren (CYP-Jiangsu) | 371 (12.2%) |
Lee Huan (KMT-Hubei) | 315 (10.3%) |
Fei Xiaotong (NDL-Hebei) | 143 (4.7%) |
Gao Wenbin (LP-Jiangsu) | 101 (3.3%) |