The struggle to end authoritarian rule often marks only the beginning for pro-democracy opposition groups that go on  to contest elections in new democracies, which I define as opposition successor parties (OSPs). Some of these parties grow into prominent political actors in the post-authoritarian period, while others quickly fragment or become loosely organized, personalistic vehicles. Despite their widespread presence across young democracies, OSPs remain surprisingly understudied from a comparative perspective. We know little about how they operate and develop after democratization—let alone how many exist. In this project, I present a conceptual and theoretical framework for understanding OSPs as a distinct category of parties—separate from authoritarian successor parties (ASPs), which stem from former ruling parties, and from new parties without pre-transition roots. I examine how OSP development is shaped by the political and organizational legacies inherited from authoritarian rule, as well as the competitive and institutional conditions that emerge after democratization. Focusing on the Asia-Pacific region, I use a mixed-methods approach that combines original party-election-level data, comparative case studies, and process tracing.

Cheong, Yeilim and Stephan Haggard. 2023. "Political Polarization in Korea." Democratization 30 (7): 1215-1239. 

Cheong, Yeilim and Stephan Haggard. 2024. "Violence and Democracy." Political Science Quarterly 00 (0): 1-17. 

"When State Repression Backfires: The Role of Information and Narratives."

"Exit, Voice, or Loyalty? Economic Opportunity, Escape Viability, and Political Dissent in North Korea." 

"Why Some Opposition Successor Parties Win While Others Falter: Comparative Evidence from the Asia-Pacific.''  

"Struggles that Strengthen: How Opposition Successor Parties Developed in the Shadow of Authoritarian Legacies in South Korea.''

"Democracy and Successor Parties in the Asia-Pacific."

"Valence Scrutiny Gone Wrong? Party Activism and Party Candidate Selection in Polarized Environments."

Cheong, Yeilim and Stephan Haggard. February, 2022. "Polarization in Korea Part I: The Public vs. Partisans." Korea Economic Institute (KEI).

Cheong, Yeilim and Stephan Haggard. March, 2022. "Polarization in Korea Part II: Divided Over What?" Korea Economic Institute (KEI).

Haggard, Stephan and Yeilim Cheong. January 2023. "2022 in Review: Is Korea Becoming More Polarized?'' The Peninsula Blog: Korea Economic Institute (KEI).

Cheong, Yeilim and Stephan Haggard. December 2024. "The Rise and Fall of Yoon Seok-yeol.'' UC IGCC Global Policy At a Glance.