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 Legislative Yuan, opposition parties were still forbidden. As a result, many opponents of the KMT, officially classified as independents, ran and were elected as members "outside the party." The movement was at times tolerated and other times suppressed, the latter being the case particularly after the Kaohsiung Incident of 1979. Members of the movement eventually formed the Democratic Progressive Party, which after opposition political parties were legalized, contested elections and won the Presidency with candidate Chen Shui-bian, ending decades of single party rule in Taiwan. History Early figures associated with the movement include Kang Ning-hsiang and Huang Hsin-chieh. College professors led a series of demonstrations and open demands for political change in city streets. By 1973 the government began to arrest the leaders of this new movement and fire those professors who openly criticized the regime. While leading an authoritarian government, Chiang Ching-kuo appeared to be open minded to the possibility of political dissent. Because the majority of seats in the Legislative Yuan were held by delegates purportedly representing constituencies in mainland China, who were elected in 1947 and appointed thereafter (because the "electorate" in mainland China was unable to cast votes in an election in the Taiwan Area), pending the promised retaking of mainland China, the tangwai movement had no possibility of gaining power. They were, however, able to use the legislature as a forum for debating the ruling KMT. In response to more native Taiwanese taking public office, the tangwai attempted to contest elections in 1975-1976 and demand even more changes to the political system. The tangwai politicians were reluctant to associate themselves with the National Assembly, as those positions were ostensibly tied to constituencies on Mainland China. They had been able to win victories in contests for the Taiwan Provincial Assembly where affiliated candidates were able to win 21 out of 77 seats. They also won in four of twenty magistrate and mayoral races. Irregularities in the vote counting process in the city of Zhongli, lead to violent clashes between protesters and police in what is now known as the Zhongli incident. Shih Ming-teh was released from prison soon after Zhongli, and attempted to involve himself with a Provincial