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<jats:p>In the 2000 presidential election, the Kuomintang (KMT) lost badly, but it remains the majority party in the Legislative Yuan. In the foreseeable future, it will continue to be a formidable force in Taiwanese politics as long as it is able to hold itself together. Its strength derives essentially from its unique position along the national identity spectrum, the most salient division underpinning Taiwan's party structure. Given the stability of voters' distribution on the national identity issue, the relative strength of the pan-KMT and the pan-Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) camps – referring to the two major parties and the parties split from them – will remain roughly the same. Under the circumstances, the major challenge confronting the KMT does not come from the DPP, but from within the pan-KMT camp. Here, other issues and even personalities may play a much more important role in shaping the configuration within the pan-KMT camp, thus affecting the KMT's overall strength.</jats:p>