List of political parties in China
The People's Republic of China is a one-party state ruled by the Chinese Communist Party. Despite this, eight minor political parties subservient to the CCP exist. The PRC is officially organized under what the CCP terms a system of multi-party cooperation and political consultation under the leadership of the CCP, in which the minor parties must accept the leadership of the CCP.
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 mainland China. Both Hong Kong and Macau possess multi-party systems that were introduced just before the handover of the territories to China.
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", while the CCP constitution declares the party to be the "highest force for political leadership".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. 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. The official party system of the PRC is termed a system of multi-party cooperation and political consultation under the leadership of the CCP. According to Human Rights Watch, these parties "play an advisory rather than an oppositional role".Other parties
Banned parties
The following parties formed in China are banned by the government:- The Communist Party of China 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.
- The Communist Party of China 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". They announced that the new leadership of the CCP is revisionist and called for uprising and reestablished the Party Central Committee.
- The New Democracy Party of China was founded by Guo Quan in Nanjing at the end of 2007.
- The Maoist Communist Party of China 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.
- The Zhi Xian Party, also known as the Chinese Constitutionalist Party in English. Founded by the supporters of Bo Xilai in 2013 and banned in December of that year.
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. The party was notable for its opposition to China's COVID-19 lockdown policies. 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. Following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, He Anquan visited Ukraine in order to document the war.
Historical parties
Defunct parties'''Extant parties banned in the People's Republic of China'''