List of political parties in China

The People's Republic of China is a one-party state ruled by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Despite this, eight minor political parties subservient to the CCP exist.

Under the one country, two systems principle, the special administrative regions of Hong Kong and Macau, which were previously colonies of European powers, operate under a different political system from the rest of China. Currently, both Hong Kong and Macau possess multi-party systems that were introduced just before the handover of the territories to China.^[1]

Legal parties

Ruling party

The Chinese Communist Party is the sole ruling party of the People's Republic of China. The Chinese constitution states that "The defining feature of socialism with Chinese characteristics is the leadership of the Communist Party of China",^[2] while the CCP constitution declares the party to be the "highest force for political leadership".^[3]

Party			Year founded	Ideology	Members (2023)	Leader	NPC seats	NPCSC seats	CPPCC seats^[a]
		Chinese Communist Party (CCP) 中国共产党 (中共) Zhōngguó Gòngchán Dǎng (Zhōnggòng)	1921	Socialism with Chinese characteristics	99,185,000^[4]	Xi Jinping 习近平	2,091 / 2,980	118 / 175	99 / 544

Minor parties

While only the CCP holds effective power at the national level, there are officially eight minor and non-oppositional parties that exist alongside the CCP that are officially titled "democratic parties" (Chinese: 民主党派; pinyin: Mínzhǔ dǎngpài).^[5] Founded before the proclamation of the People's Republic of China, these parties must accept the "leading role" of the CCP as a condition of their continued existence.^[6] The relationship between these parties and the CCP has officially been described as "long-term coexistence and mutual supervision, treating each other with full sincerity and sharing weal or woe" (prosperity or adversity) ^[7] According to Human Rights Watch, these parties "play an advisory rather than an oppositional role".^[8]

The eight minor parties take part in "united front work" and also take part in the political system, but they have no power at a national level.^[9]^[5] The Chinese political system allows for the participation of some members of the eight minor parties and other non-CCP members in the National People's Congress (NPC), but they are vetted by the CCP.^[8] According to Aaron Friedberg, these parties' "purpose is to create the illusion of inclusiveness and representation."^[10] One of the ways the CCP controls the minor parties is through its United Front Work Department (UFWD), which vets the membership applications and controls who is the leader of these parties.^[11] UFWD also keeps the parties in check by preventing them from expanding widely in counties and villages.^[11] The cadres of the eight parties are trained at the Central Institute of Socialism.^[12] The parties are directed by the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party to study and implement Xi Jinping Thought.^[13] There is officially a ranking system of the parties; the ranking is based on their "contribution to the new democratic revolution".^[14]

	Year founded	Members (2022)	Chairperson	NPC seats	NPCSC seats	CPPCC seats^[a]
Revolutionary Committee of the Chinese Kuomintang (RCCK) 中国国民党革命委员会 (民革) Zhōngguó Guómíndǎng Gémìng Wěiyuánhuì (Míngé)	1948	158,000^[15]	Zheng Jianbang 郑建邦	44 / 2,980	6 / 175	65 / 544
China Democratic League (CDL) 中国民主同盟 (民盟) Zhōngguó Mínzhǔ Tóngméng (Mínméng)	1941	348,300^[16]	Ding Zhongli 丁仲礼	57 / 2,980	9 / 175	65 / 544
China National Democratic Construction Association (CNDCA) 中国民主建国会 (民建) Zhōngguó Mínzhǔ Jiànguó Huì (Mínjiàn)	1945	220,000^[17]	Hao Mingjin 郝明金	57 / 2,980	3 / 175	65 / 544
China Association for Promoting Democracy (CAPD) 中国民主促进会 (民进) Zhōngguó Mínzhǔ Cùjìn Huì (Mínjìn)	1945	192,000^[18]	Cai Dafeng 蔡达峰	58 / 2,980	7 / 175	45 / 544
Chinese Peasants' and Workers' Democratic Party (CPWDP) 中国农工民主党 (农工党) Zhōngguó Nónggōng Mínzhǔdǎng (Nónggōngdǎng)	1930	192,000^[19]	He Wei 何维	54 / 2,980	7 / 175	45 / 544
China Zhi Gong Party (CZGP) 中国致公党 (致公党) Zhōngguó Zhì Gōng Dǎng (Zhìgōngdǎng)	1925	69,000^[20]	Jiang Zuojun 蒋作君	38 / 2,980	3 / 175	30 / 544
Jiusan Society (JS) 九三学社 Jiǔsānxuéshè	1945	204,069^[21]	Wu Weihua 武维华	63 / 2,980	4 / 175	45 / 544
Taiwan Democratic Self-Government League (TDSL) 台湾民主自治同盟 (台盟) Táiwān Mínzhǔ Zìzhì Tóngméng (Táiméng)	1947	3,400^[22]	Su Hui 苏辉	13 / 2,980	3 / 175	20 / 544

Other parties

Banned parties

The following parties formed in China are (or have previously been) banned by the government:

The Communist Party of China (Marxist–Leninist) (Chinese: 中国共产党 (马列)) is an anti-revisionist communist party founded in 1976 by several Maoist rebel factions of the Red Guards in Wuhan, Hubei. They believed it was illegal to arrest the Gang of Four and that the new leadership of the CCP is revisionist and unlawful. They were suppressed after attempts at an armed revolt failed in Shanghai, Zhejiang, Canton and Yunnan.^[23]
The Communist Party of China (Workers' and Peasants' Liberation Army) (Chinese: 中国共产党 (工农解放军)) is an anti-revisionist communist party founded in 1976 by a Maoist rebel faction of the Red Guards in Fujian. They used the old fortifications built during the Chinese Civil War and organized a partisan army named the "Workers' and Peasants' Liberation Army".^[24] They announced that the new leadership of the CCP is revisionist and called for uprising and reestablished the Party Central Committee.^[25] Their activities lasted until 1978.
The Democracy Party of China (Chinese: 中国民主党) was founded by participants of the 1978 Democracy Wall movement and the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests. Founded in 1998, it was declared illegal that same year.^[26]^[27]
The Union of Chinese Nationalists (Chinese: 中国泛蓝联盟) supports the ideals of the Pan-Blue Coalition in Taiwan. As such, its goals include establishing a liberal democracy in China, based on Sun Yat-sen's Three Principles of the People. The group originated from an internet forum discussion in August 2004. The Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council said it is an illegal organization on April 25, 2007.^[28]
The New Democracy Party of China (Chinese: 中国新民党) was founded by Guo Quan in Nanjing at the end of 2007.^[26]^[27]
The Maoist Communist Party of China (Chinese: 中国毛泽东主义共产党) is an anti-revisionist communist party founded in 2008. The party seeks to initiate a "second socialist revolution" to re-establish the dictatorship of the proletariat. It has been subject to crackdowns by the Chinese government.^[29]
The Zhi Xian Party (Chinese: 至宪党), also known as the Chinese Constitutionalist Party in English. Founded by the supporters of Bo Xilai^[30]^[31] in 2013 and banned in December of that year.^[32]^[33]
The Chinese Proletarian Revolutionary Central Committee (Chinese: 中国无产阶级革命中央委员会, abbreviated Chinese: 中革中央) is an anti-revisionist communist party founded in the 2010s by Zhou Qun (Chinese: 周群). The party leaders were members of a rebel faction (Chinese: 造反派) during the Cultural Revolution, and the committee core consisted of dozens of laid-off workers (Chinese: 大下岗) in Jiangsu. It was suppressed after the police found their "provocative" online activities.^{[citation needed]}

Overseas parties

Shanghai National Party is a pro-democracy party which advocates for Shanghai independence, led by He Anquan, who left China after the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests and massacre.^[34] The party was notable for its opposition to China's COVID-19 lockdown policies.^[34] In particular, he referred to the lockdowns in Shanghai as a genocide and maintained a hunger strike outside the Chinese consulate in New York City.^[35] Following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, He visited Ukraine in order to document the war.^[36]

Notes

^ ^a ^b Seats for political parties

References

^ Buckley, Roger (1997-05-28). Hong Kong: The Road to 1997 (1 ed.). Cambridge University Press. doi:10.1017/cbo9780511612220. ISBN 978-0-521-47008-7. S2CID 162068953.
^ Wei, Changhao; Hu, Taige (11 March 2018). "Annotated Translation: 2018 Amendment to the PRC Constitution (Version 2.0)". NPC Observer. Archived from the original on 22 December 2018. Retrieved 4 November 2023.
^ Xu, Wei (28 October 2022). "Amendment to the Party Constitution elaborated". China Daily. Retrieved 4 November 2023.
^ "中国共产党党内统计公报" [Communist Party of China Party Statistics Announcement] (in Chinese). State Council of the People's Republic of China. 30 June 2024. Archived from the original on 30 June 2024. Retrieved 30 June 2024.
^ ^a ^b Liao, Xingmiu; Tsai, Wen-Hsuan (2019). "Clientelistic State Corporatism: The United Front Model of "Pairing-Up" in the Xi Jinping Era". China Review. 19 (1): 31–56. ISSN 1680-2012. JSTOR 26603249.
^ Tselichtchev, Ivan, ed. (2012-01-02). China Versus the West: The Global Power Shift of the 21st Century. Hoboken, NJ, USA: John Wiley & Sons, Inc. doi:10.1002/9781119199311. ISBN 978-1-119-19931-1. OCLC 883259659.
^ "IV. The System of Multi-Party Cooperation and Political Consultation". China Internet Information Center. Retrieved 2022-12-30.
^ ^a ^b "China: Nipped In The Bud - Background". Human Rights Watch. Retrieved 2021-03-18.
^ Kesselman, Mark (2012-01-01). Introduction to Politics of the Developing World: Political Challenges and Changing Agendas. Cengage Learning. p. 324. ISBN 978-1-133-71258-9.
^ Friedberg, Aaron L. (2022). Getting China Wrong. Cambridge. p. 50. ISBN 978-1-509-54512-4. OCLC 1310457810.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
^ ^a ^b Baptista, Eduardo (2021-06-11). "Are there other political parties in China?". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 2022-12-26.
^ "中央社会主义学院为啥与众不同？" [Why is the Central Institute of Socialism different?]. Sohu. 26 December 2018. Retrieved 12 May 2024.
^ "民进反映社情民意信息主题年暨2021年参政议政年会". www.mj.org.cn. November 30, 2021. Archived from the original on 28 August 2024. Retrieved 2024-09-13.
^ "我国八个民主党派排序考". Lishui Municipal Committee of the Revolutionary Committee of the Chinese Kuomintang. 9 December 2012. Archived from the original on 4 March 2014. Retrieved 30 December 2022.
^ "Zheng Jianbang elected chairman of Chinese KMT Revolutionary Committee". Xinhua News Agency. 11 December 2022. Retrieved 2022-12-27.
^ 中国民主同盟简介 [Introduction to the China Democratic League]. China Democratic League (in Chinese). 25 April 2012. Retrieved 22 December 2017.
^ "新闻背景：中国民主建国会" [News background: China National Democratic Construction Association]. Xinhua News Agency. 16 December 2022. Retrieved 5 December 2023.
^ "新闻背景：中国民主促进会" [News background: China Association for Promoting Democracy]. Xinhua News Agency. 18 December 2022. Retrieved 5 December 2023.
^ "新闻背景：中国农工民主党" [News background: Chinese Peasants and Workers Party]. Xinhua News Agency. 7 December 2022. Retrieved 5 December 2023.
^ "新闻背景：中国致公党" [News background: China Zhi Gong Party]. Xinhua News Agency. 13 December 2022. Retrieved 5 December 2023.
^ "九三学社简介" [Introduction to Jiusan Society]. Jiusan Society. Retrieved 5 December 2023.
^ "新闻背景：台湾民主自治同盟" [News background: Taiwan Democratic Self-Government League]. Xinhua News Agency. 7 December 2022. Retrieved 5 December 2023.
^ Su, Yuan (2017). 1978-1979: Diary. China Cultural Communication Press.
^ "'四人帮'在福建打游击". 展望. 01. 1977-01-01.
^ "福建四人帮战讯". 展望. 1977-12-01.
^ ^a ^b Gittings, John (2005). The Changing Face of China: From Mao to Market. Oxford University Press, 2005. ISBN 0-19-280612-2.
^ ^a ^b Goldsmith, Jack; Wu, Tim (2006-06-29). Who Controls the Internet?: Illusions of a Borderless World. Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/oso/9780195152661.001.0001. ISBN 978-0-19-515266-1.
^ "国台办称中国泛蓝联盟是非法组织" [The Taiwan Affairs Office said the Union of Chinese Nationalists is an illegal organization.]. Phoenix TV (in Chinese (China)). 25 April 2007.
^ Demick, Barbara (20 March 2012). "China puts a stop to Maoist revival". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on 4 June 2012. Retrieved 14 December 2016.
^ Moore, Malcolm. "Former teacher names Bo Xilai chairman of 'new political party'". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 10 November 2013. Retrieved 10 November 2013.
^ Benjamin Kang Lim and Ben Blanchard (9 November 2013). "Bo Xilai supporters launch new political party in China". The Globe and Mail. Toronto. Retrieved 10 November 2013.
^ Shao, Heng. "Bizarre China Report: The Grand Wedding, Power Play & Smog-Inspired Creativity". Forbes. Archived from the original on 2018-01-27. Retrieved 2017-09-03.
^ "北京民政局发出取缔"至宪党"决定". Deutsche Welle. 14 December 2013. Archived from the original on 16 May 2019. Retrieved 28 December 2016.
^ ^a ^b Areddy, James (26 April 2022). "Shanghai Lockdown Bolsters a Fringe Independence Movement". The Wall Street Journal. Archived from the original on 26 April 2022.
^ "旅美异见人士纽约中领馆外绝食抗议上海封城 — 普通话主页". Radio Free Asia. April 5, 2022. Archived from the original on February 14, 2023.
^ Hsiao-hwa, Hsia; Long, Qiao; Ao, Jia. "Exiled Chinese dissident travels to Ukraine in bid to document war". Radio Free Asia.

[a-4] Seats for political parties

[1] Buckley, Roger (1997-05-28). Hong Kong: The Road to 1997 (1 ed.). Cambridge University Press. doi:10.1017/cbo9780511612220. ISBN 978-0-521-47008-7. S2CID 162068953.

[:02-2] Wei, Changhao; Hu, Taige (11 March 2018). "Annotated Translation: 2018 Amendment to the PRC Constitution (Version 2.0)". NPC Observer. Archived from the original on 22 December 2018. Retrieved 4 November 2023.

[3] Xu, Wei (28 October 2022). "Amendment to the Party Constitution elaborated". China Daily. Retrieved 4 November 2023.

[2023PartyCensus-5] "中国共产党党内统计公报" [Communist Party of China Party Statistics Announcement] (in Chinese). State Council of the People's Republic of China. 30 June 2024. Archived from the original on 30 June 2024. Retrieved 30 June 2024.

[:0-6] Liao, Xingmiu; Tsai, Wen-Hsuan (2019). "Clientelistic State Corporatism: The United Front Model of "Pairing-Up" in the Xi Jinping Era". China Review. 19 (1): 31–56. ISSN 1680-2012. JSTOR 26603249.

[7] Tselichtchev, Ivan, ed. (2012-01-02). China Versus the West: The Global Power Shift of the 21st Century. Hoboken, NJ, USA: John Wiley & Sons, Inc. doi:10.1002/9781119199311. ISBN 978-1-119-19931-1. OCLC 883259659.

[8] "IV. The System of Multi-Party Cooperation and Political Consultation". China Internet Information Center. Retrieved 2022-12-30.

[:1-9] "China: Nipped In The Bud - Background". Human Rights Watch. Retrieved 2021-03-18.

[10] Kesselman, Mark (2012-01-01). Introduction to Politics of the Developing World: Political Challenges and Changing Agendas. Cengage Learning. p. 324. ISBN 978-1-133-71258-9.

[11] Friedberg, Aaron L. (2022). Getting China Wrong. Cambridge. p. 50. ISBN 978-1-509-54512-4. OCLC 1310457810.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)

[:2-12] Baptista, Eduardo (2021-06-11). "Are there other political parties in China?". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 2022-12-26.

[:12-13] "中央社会主义学院为啥与众不同？" [Why is the Central Institute of Socialism different?]. Sohu. 26 December 2018. Retrieved 12 May 2024.

[14] "民进反映社情民意信息主题年暨2021年参政议政年会". www.mj.org.cn. November 30, 2021. Archived from the original on 28 August 2024. Retrieved 2024-09-13.

[15] "我国八个民主党派排序考". Lishui Municipal Committee of the Revolutionary Committee of the Chinese Kuomintang. 9 December 2012. Archived from the original on 4 March 2014. Retrieved 30 December 2022.

[16] "Zheng Jianbang elected chairman of Chinese KMT Revolutionary Committee". Xinhua News Agency. 11 December 2022. Retrieved 2022-12-27.

[OfficialIntro-17] 中国民主同盟简介 [Introduction to the China Democratic League]. China Democratic League (in Chinese). 25 April 2012. Retrieved 22 December 2017.

[:03-18] "新闻背景：中国民主建国会" [News background: China National Democratic Construction Association]. Xinhua News Agency. 16 December 2022. Retrieved 5 December 2023.

[:13-19] "新闻背景：中国民主促进会" [News background: China Association for Promoting Democracy]. Xinhua News Agency. 18 December 2022. Retrieved 5 December 2023.

[:04-20] "新闻背景：中国农工民主党" [News background: Chinese Peasants and Workers Party]. Xinhua News Agency. 7 December 2022. Retrieved 5 December 2023.

[21] "新闻背景：中国致公党" [News background: China Zhi Gong Party]. Xinhua News Agency. 13 December 2022. Retrieved 5 December 2023.

[:14-22] "九三学社简介" [Introduction to Jiusan Society]. Jiusan Society. Retrieved 5 December 2023.

[:15-23] "新闻背景：台湾民主自治同盟" [News background: Taiwan Democratic Self-Government League]. Xinhua News Agency. 7 December 2022. Retrieved 5 December 2023.

[24] Su, Yuan (2017). 1978-1979: Diary. China Cultural Communication Press.

[25] "'四人帮'在福建打游击". 展望. 01. 1977-01-01.

[26] "福建四人帮战讯". 展望. 1977-12-01.

[Gittings-27] Gittings, John (2005). The Changing Face of China: From Mao to Market. Oxford University Press, 2005. ISBN 0-19-280612-2.

[Goldsmith-28] Goldsmith, Jack; Wu, Tim (2006-06-29). Who Controls the Internet?: Illusions of a Borderless World. Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/oso/9780195152661.001.0001. ISBN 978-0-19-515266-1.

[29] "国台办称中国泛蓝联盟是非法组织" [The Taiwan Affairs Office said the Union of Chinese Nationalists is an illegal organization.]. Phoenix TV (in Chinese (China)). 25 April 2007.

[30] Demick, Barbara (20 March 2012). "China puts a stop to Maoist revival". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on 4 June 2012. Retrieved 14 December 2016.

[31] Moore, Malcolm. "Former teacher names Bo Xilai chairman of 'new political party'". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 10 November 2013. Retrieved 10 November 2013.

[32] Benjamin Kang Lim and Ben Blanchard (9 November 2013). "Bo Xilai supporters launch new political party in China". The Globe and Mail. Toronto. Retrieved 10 November 2013.

[33] Shao, Heng. "Bizarre China Report: The Grand Wedding, Power Play & Smog-Inspired Creativity". Forbes. Archived from the original on 2018-01-27. Retrieved 2017-09-03.

[34] "北京民政局发出取缔"至宪党"决定". Deutsche Welle. 14 December 2013. Archived from the original on 16 May 2019. Retrieved 28 December 2016.

[web.archive.org-35] Areddy, James (26 April 2022). "Shanghai Lockdown Bolsters a Fringe Independence Movement". The Wall Street Journal. Archived from the original on 26 April 2022.

[36] "旅美异见人士纽约中领馆外绝食抗议上海封城 — 普通话主页". Radio Free Asia. April 5, 2022. Archived from the original on February 14, 2023.

[37] Hsiao-hwa, Hsia; Long, Qiao; Ao, Jia. "Exiled Chinese dissident travels to Ukraine in bid to document war". Radio Free Asia.

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List of political parties in China

Legal parties

Ruling party

Minor parties

Other parties

Banned parties

Overseas parties

See also

Notes

References

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