# Communist Party

By [rudo1618](https://paragraph.com/@rudo1618) · 2021-10-29

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Since 2018, the main body of the [Chinese constitution](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constitution_of_the_People%27s_Republic_of_China) declares that "the defining feature of [socialism with Chinese characteristics](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Socialism_with_Chinese_characteristics) is the leadership of the [Chinese Communist Party](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_Communist_Party) (CCP)."[\[198\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/China#cite_note-2018-amendments-translated-216) The 2018 amendments constitutionalized the _de facto_ [one-party state](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/One-party_state) status of China,[\[198\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/China#cite_note-2018-amendments-translated-216) wherein the [CCP General Secretary](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_Secretary_of_the_Chinese_Communist_Party) ([party leader](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leader_of_the_Chinese_Communist_Party)) holds ultimate power and authority over state and government and serves as the informal [Paramount leader](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paramount_leader).[\[199\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/China#cite_note-217) The current General Secretary is [Xi Jinping](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xi_Jinping), who took office on November 15, 2012, and was re-elected on 25 October 2017.[\[200\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/China#cite_note-218) The [electoral system](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elections_in_the_People%27s_Republic_of_China) is pyramidal. Local People's Congresses are [directly elected](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Direct_election), and higher levels of People's Congresses up to the [National People's Congress](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_People%27s_Congress) (NPC) are [indirectly elected](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indirect_election) by the People's Congress of the level immediately below.[\[192\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/China#cite_note-Constitution-210)

This section **relies too much on** [**references**](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Verifiability) **to** [**primary sources**](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:No_original_research#Primary,_secondary_and_tertiary_sources). Please improve this section by adding [secondary or tertiary sources](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:No_original_research#Primary,_secondary_and_tertiary_sources). _(November 2020) (_[_Learn how and when to remove this template message_](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:Maintenance_template_removal)_)_

[Another eight political parties](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_political_parties_in_China), have representatives in the NPC and the [Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_People%27s_Political_Consultative_Conference) (CPPCC).[\[201\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/China#cite_note-219) China supports the Leninist principle of "[democratic centralism](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democratic_centralism)",[\[192\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/China#cite_note-Constitution-210) but critics describe the elected National People's Congress as a "[rubber stamp](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rubber_stamp_\(politics\))" body.[\[202\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/China#cite_note-220)

Since both the CCP and the [People's Liberation Army](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/People%27s_Liberation_Army) (PLA) promote according to seniority, it is possible to discern distinct [generations of Chinese leadership](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Generations_of_Chinese_leadership).[\[203\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/China#cite_note-ReferenceA-221) In official discourse, each group of leadership is identified with a distinct extension of the ideology of the party. Historians have studied various periods in the development of the government of the [People's Republic of China](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/People%27s_Republic_of_China) by reference to these "generations".

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*Originally published on [rudo1618](https://paragraph.com/@rudo1618/communist-party)*