While most studies of party systems in East Asia are organized around analysis of individual countries, this paper searches for commonalities in issue and value orientations that structure party competition across the region. Going beyond the commonly used left-right paradigm, we theorize five dimensions that may form salient divides among major parties: economic issues, cultural values, attitudes toward democracy, appraisal of former authoritarian rule, and nationalism. Using cross-national public opinion surveys, we examine the extent to which major party supporters are distinguishable on each dimension. Findings show that past regime evaluation constitutes a significant party divide in a majority of cases, while parties are rarely differentiated by economic preferences. We also discuss difficulties in identifying common axes of competition among East Asian party systems.