In Profile: The Unlikely Architect of Kuomintang’s New Cross-Strait Dialogue

1. On March 29, 2026, a wreath from Kuomintang (KMT) Chair Cheng Li-wun was placed at Huanghuagang 72 Martyrs’ Cemetery in Guangzhou, marking the first formal display of her title on mainland soil [para. 1][para. 2].

2. On March 31, Song Tao, head of the Communist Party’s Taiwan Work Office, invited Cheng to visit Jiangsu, Shanghai, and Beijing from April 7-12, resuming top-level KMT-CCP exchanges paused since Hung Hsiu-chu’s 2016 Beijing trip [para. 3][para. 4][para. 5].

3. Previous KMT chairs Wu Den-yih, Johnny Chiang, and Eric Chu avoided mainland visits post-2017, limiting exchanges to vice-chair level [para. 6].

4. At a Nanjing banquet on April 7, Song hailed the visit as a major event after 10 years, criticizing DPP for rejecting the 1992 Consensus and promoting Taiwan independence, while pledging cooperation with KMT for peace [para. 7][para. 8][para. 9][para. 10].

5. Before departing Taipei on April 7, Cheng, a former two-term KMT legislator, emphasized preventing war and building peace via cross-strait dialogue amid DPP rule since 2016 [para. 12][para. 13][para. 14][para. 15].

6. Cheng uniquely campaigned on restarting high-level exchanges, prioritizing Beijing over Washington in 2026 despite KMT’s pro-US stance, to enhance her US leverage later [para. 16][para. 17][para. 18][para. 19][para. 20][para. 21][para. 22].

7. Chang Jung-kung noted the trip’s timing ahead of a delayed Trump-Xi summit eases tensions, urging KMT action on “war vs. peace” rhetoric from 2024 elections [para. 23][para. 24][para. 25][para. 26][para. 27][para. 28][para. 29].

8. Cheng joined KMT in 2005 as Lien Chan’s spokesperson during his ice-breaking trip; formerly a DPP National Assembly member (1996) and Chen Shui-bian aide, she switched after disputes [para. 30][para. 31][para. 34][para. 35][para. 36][para. 37][para. 38].

9. Despite no mayoral wins, Cheng won chairmanship on Oct. 18, 2025, with 60,000+ votes (over 50%) via grassroots social media, beating Hau Lung-pin on pro-mainland, 1992 Consensus platform [para. 39][para. 40][para. 41][para. 42][para. 43][para. 44][para. 45][para. 46][para. 47][para. 48][para. 49][para. 50].

10. Her term faces 2026 local elections test, controlling 14 municipalities [para. 51][para. 52].

11. Cheng’s heritage (Yunnan father, Taiwanese mother) and Hokkien fluency aid appeal; at Sun Yat-sen Mausoleum, she reframed history from Taiwanese colonial perspective, linking revolution to anti-colonial hopes [para. 54][para. 55][para. 56][para. 57][para. 58][para. 59][para. 60].

12. She invoked leftist Chen Ming-chung’s 2005 KMT speech for reconciliation and visited Machangding Memorial Park in Nov. 2025, bowing to White Terror victims [para. 62][para. 63][para. 65][para. 66].

13. In Shanghai on April 9, Cheng reflected on Huangpu River’s tragic history (Opium War, 1937 Battle, 1949 exodus), extolling peace’s transformative power, reciting “In Flanders Fields” [para. 70][para. 71][para. 72][para. 73][para. 74].

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