In 1924 Sun Yat-sen modernized the Guomindang in Guangdong and hold the first national congress (Guomindang diyici quanguo daibiao dahui 国民党第一次全国代表大会). At that time he newly stressed the Three Principles of the People (sanmin zhuyi 三民主义: nationalism, democracy, people's livelihood - minzu zhuyi 民族主义, minquan zhuyi 民权主义, minsheng zhuyi 民生主义 - and actually anti-imperialism). Sun Yat-sen Within the united front with the Communist Party followed three principles of politics (sanda zhengce 三大政策): alliance with the Soviet Union (lian Su 联苏), with the Communist Party (lian Gong 联共), and supporting peasants and workers (fuzhu nonggong 扶助农工).

Huangpu military academy (in the West known as Whampoa; Huangpu junxiao 黄埔军校) was founded with Chiang Kai-shek and Liao Zhongkai 廖仲恺 as directors, military base served the party for the above sake. In the hope to reunite China Sun Yat-sen traveled to Beijing where he wanted to organize a parliament with the help of Zhang Zuolin and Feng Yuxiang. Because he proposed not further to accept the Twenty-one Articles imposed by Japan Sun Yat-sen was internationally not acknowledged. He suddenly died on March 12, 1925 in Beijing.