List of political parties in China

Ruling party

The Chinese Communist Party is the sole ruling party of the People's Republic of China. Article 1 of 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]

More information Party, Year founded ...

Party			Year founded	Ideology	Members (2024)	Leader	NPC seats	NPCSC seats	NCCPPCC seats[a]
		Chinese Communist Party (CCP) 中国共产党 (中共) Zhōngguó Gòngchán Dǎng (Zhōnggòng)	1921	Socialism with Chinese characteristics	100,271,000[4]	Xi Jinping 习近平	2,091 / 2,980	118 / 175	99 / 544

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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.^[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 official party system of the PRC is termed a system of multi-party cooperation and political consultation under the leadership of the CCP.^[7] According to Human Rights Watch, these parties "play an advisory rather than an oppositional role".^[8]

Banned parties

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

More information Party, Year founded ...

Party			Year founded	Ideology	Members (2010)	Leader	NPC seats	NPCSC seats	CPPCC seats[a]
		Union of Chinese Nationalists (UOCN) 中国泛蓝联盟	2004	Tridemism Conservatism[18][better source needed]	5,000	Wen Yan 文炎	0 / 2,980	0 / 175	0 / 544
		Democracy Party of China (DPC) 中国民主党	1998[19][20]	Liberalism		Liu Dongxing 刘东星	0 / 2,980	0 / 175	0 / 544

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• 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.^{[21][better source needed]}
• 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".^[22] They announced that the new leadership of the CCP is revisionist and called for uprising and reestablished the Party Central Committee.^[23]
• The New Democracy Party of China (Chinese: 中国新民党) was founded by Guo Quan in Nanjing at the end of 2007.^[19][20]
• 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.^[24]
• The Zhi Xian Party (Chinese: 至宪党), also known as the Chinese Constitutionalist Party in English. Founded by the supporters of Bo Xilai^[25][26] in 2013 and banned in December of that year.^[27][28]

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.^[29] The party was notable for its opposition to China's COVID-19 lockdown policies.^[29] 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.^[30] Following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, He Anquan visited Ukraine in order to document the war.^[31]

Defunct parties

Extant parties banned in the People's Republic of China