When Sun Yat-sen dies in 1925, the political leadership of the Nationalist Party falls to Wang Jingwei and Hu Hanmin, respectively the left wing and right wing leaders of the Kuomintang.

The real power, however, lies with Chiang Kai-shek who, as superintendent of the Whampoa Military Academy, is in near complete control of the military.

With this military power, the Kuomintang confirm their power in Guangzhou and Guangdong (the province containing Guangzhou) and