On its website, the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong has the banner: 'Join us, a party with a future.' As the DAB is now the party with the most seats in the Legislative Council, following the election, it is timely to examine what role it will play as Hong Kong moves towards universal suffrage. It would be rash to attribute the party's success to Beijing's conspicuous support and to the various handouts the DAB gives to its constituents. The DAB was set up when Hong Kong people's fear and suspicion of communism were at their peak. It suffered whenever people felt threatened by a non-democratic government, such as when there was a proposal to legislate Basic Law Article 23. Misfortune also struck the DAB when one of its founding members was convicted and imprisoned on a corruption charge in 2001, while another passed away last year. Despite all this, the DAB has survived and grown, and captured 10 seats in the most recent Legco election. It now boasts more than 10,000 members; its senior ranks comprise retired government officials and business people; its district network extends beyond the most vulnerable groups to include professionals and ethnic minorities; and it has become a multi-class, cross-district political party ready to take up greater challenges. The DAB displayed political vision for the future in this election. First, it persuaded Lau Wong-fat, the Heung Yee Kuk chairman, to withdraw from contesting the seat in the district council functional constituency. With Ip Kwok-him, the DAB vice-chairman, occupying the seat after the election, the party can expand its influence in the district councils. This is a strategically important move, as the district councils may return a number of additional seats in the 2012 election. Second, two new DAB members in their 30s, Starry Lee Wai-king and Gary Chan Hak-kan, were elected. Next month, the DAB will probably exercise more influence than just through the voting power of its legislators. Tsang Yok-sing has been tipped to succeed Rita Fan Hsu Lai-tai as Legco president. His seat on the Executive Council is likely to be taken by another DAB member, Lau Kong-wah. The three members of the Federation of Trade Unions in the legislature can be relied on to work with the DAB on many issues, particularly the future electoral arrangements. The weakened Liberal Party may be more compliant with proposals from the DAB. Many functional constituency members, particularly those from the business and professional groups, will be willing to give the DAB more than a fair hearing. Within the government, Tsang Tak-sing, Tsang Yok-sing's brother, is a bureau chief. Gary So Kam-leung, a former DAB vice-chairman, has been appointed an undersecretary, and the party also successfully nominated two candidates for appointment as political assistants. With its political network spreading across the executive and legislative branches, the DAB will be the Tsang administration's most important ally. While the party is committed to supporting the government in general terms, and particularly on constitutional development proposals, it has enough discretion in economic and social matters to hold the administration to account. Whether the DAB will assume a greater role in the future governance of Hong Kong depends on two factors. First, the attitude of Beijing. It has always insisted on an executive-led system of government in Hong Kong; the present arrangements do not allow the chief executive to be a member of any political party. But an executive-led government does not mean that it cannot be made up of members of political parties. The recent appointments of undersecretaries and political appointees have already opened the door, albeit not to the liking of many people. If, and when, the direct election of the chief executive takes place in 2017, candidates will have to rely on friendly political parties to do the mundane work of getting voters to the polling stations. By convention, the winner rewards his or her main supporting party by offering its members the majority of ministerial posts. So it is entirely conceivable that Beijing may want to see the DAB assuming a greater role as we move towards 2017. The second factor is whether the DAB will have enough capable people to fill ministerial posts when the time comes. This should not be an insurmountable problem. If Beijing sends the right message, more than enough talent will join. To people with political ambition, exercising real executive power is more interesting than being a battling legislator. If China continues to be responsible abroad and be more open at home, 'pro-China' may become a brand name. As long as the DAB continues to participate in direct elections, it must heed public opinion and cannot simply take orders from the Hong Kong government. The more the DAB wants to govern in the future, the more it will have to make sure the government is on the right track. The biggest uncertainty over universal suffrage is whether Hong Kong people will elect a chief executive and a majority of legislators that Beijing does not favour. If the DAB is able to convince a substantial number of voters in the 2012 election that it is a party of the people, for the people, then it will be on its way to becoming a ruling party, in substance if not name. But, to achieve this, the DAB must be true to its name, that is, foster a democratic alliance for the betterment of Hong Kong. Joseph Wong Wing-ping, formerly secretary for the civil service, is currently an adjunct professor at Chinese University of Hong Kong