Editing Zhou Wei-lin (section)

==Ascension to Power==
Following the war, Zhou served on the Laeralian Republic's constitution drafting committee. Initially passed over for high office in the first Republican government, Zhou was instead appointed as personal secretary to President Gramont, a position equivalent to the modern-day chief of staff. In 1926, fulfilling Zhou's aspiration, President Gramont appointed him as Minister of Education, where he oversaw curricular reform and the mass expansion of public schooling. From 1931 to 1934, he was mayor of Laeralsford (then an appointed position) and from 1934 to 1938, he served as Minister of Public Works. His proximity to René Gramont made his voice in government influential regardless of his official role, and he was among the titular figures of the [[Gang of Five]] clique. His experience in various government roles and his keen logistical mind made him a policy leader of the party; from 1937 to 1942, he chaired the SDP's Central Policy Affairs Committee, which was responsible for setting the party's course on legislation and drafting the five-year plan. He also sat on the SDP's Central Working Committee, a committee of eight who led the Social Democratic Party's day-to-day operations. 

As President J.P. Salaun approached the end of his second term as president (1937-1942), succession became an open question. Vice President [[Hong Kuo-shu]] expected to receive Salaun's endorsement and be anointed as the Social Democratic Party's next presidential nominee, yet Hong was a divisive figure who had made enemies within the party. After Salaun chose to remain silent on the matter of presidential succession, Gramont initially hoped to recruit [[Julien Cheng]], then prime minister, as the next presidential candidate, yet Cheng was unwilling to pursue the role and challenge Hong. Gramont then approached Zhou to announce his bid for the presidential nomination. 

At the Fifth Social Democratic Party Congress in 1942, Hong's enemies in the party, generally moderates desiring greater political liberalization and skeptical of agricultural collectivization, spread rumors that Hong was morally dissolute and aimed to concentrate power among his own followers. In the first contested presidential nomination vote in the SDP's history, Hong was narrowly defeated by Zhou. Zhou then ensured the selection of moderate [[Alban Hamel]] as his vice-presidential nominee. In the 1942 election, Zhou was elected as expected, receiving 62.7% of the vote.