Government and power in China

Who leads China, how the World Bank's governance indicators score it, how many women sit in parliament and government, what the state spends and taxes, and the official bodies that hold power to account. System of government: Unitary socialist republic led by the Communist Party of China.

Who leads China?

• Head of state: Xi Jinping (President of the People's Republic of China)
• Head of government: Li Qiang (Premier of the State Council of the People’s Republic of China)
• Foreign minister: Wang Yi (Member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, Director of the Office of the Central Commission for Foreign Affairs and Minister for Foreign Affairs of the People’s Republic of China)

Source: Heads of State, Heads of Government, Ministers for Foreign Affairs: Public List (United Nations Protocol and Liaison Service), list dated 15 October 2026. All world leaders.

Governance scores

The World Bank's Worldwide Governance Indicators combine surveys of households and firms with assessments by public, private and non-governmental bodies. Each score runs from 0 to 100; higher means the sources rate governance better. They measure perceptions, and each has a margin of error.

Voice and accountability

Measures how far citizens can choose their government, and freedom of expression, association and the media.

Political stability and absence of violence

Measures the likelihood of political instability or politically motivated violence, including terrorism.

Government effectiveness

Measures the quality of public services and the civil service, and how independent they are from political pressure.

Regulatory quality

Measures the government's ability to make and carry out policies that let the private sector develop.

Rule of law

Measures confidence in and respect for the rules of society, including contract enforcement, property rights, the police and the courts.

Control of corruption

Measures how far public power is used for private gain, including petty and grand corruption and "capture" of the state by elites.

Official bodies that hold power in China

Government

• The State Council of the People's Republic of China
  State Council policies, regulations, the Government Work Report and official announcements.

Courts

• Supreme People's Court
  Judicial interpretations, guiding cases and the court's annual work report.

Public contracts

• China Government Procurement Network
  Central and local government procurement notices, award announcements and procurement rules.

Laws and the official gazette

• National Database of Laws and Regulations
  Texts of the Constitution, national laws, administrative regulations and judicial interpretations.

Government below the national level

• Provincial level (22 provinces, 5 autonomous regions, 4 centrally administered municipalities, 2 special administrative regions: Hong Kong and Macao): Governor elected by the provincial people's congress (whose deputies are elected indirectly); Party secretary appointed through the Party system
• Prefecture level (about 333, mostly prefecture-level cities): Mayor elected by the prefecture people's congress; Party secretary appointed
• County level (about 2,840 counties, county-level cities and urban districts): People's congress deputies directly elected by voters; county head elected by the congress; Party secretary appointed
• Township level (about 38,700 townships, towns and urban sub-districts/jiedao): Township congress directly elected; sub-district offices (jiedao) in cities are agencies of the district government, not elected
• Villagers' committees (rural) and residents' committees (urban): Three to seven members (residents' committees five to nine) directly elected by residents for five-year terms; candidates must support Party leadership

How local power works in China

Places in China

• All 31 provinces
• The 4 largest cities
• Official statistics for China

Sources

• World Bank: Worldwide Governance Indicators: Voice and accountability (governance score 0-100), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 70f2804fd1e2…)
• World Bank: Worldwide Governance Indicators: Political stability and absence of violence (governance score 0-100), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 1317de0c85e1…)
• World Bank: Worldwide Governance Indicators: Government effectiveness (governance score 0-100), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 a775e808dc65…)
• World Bank: Worldwide Governance Indicators: Regulatory quality (governance score 0-100), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 83b57e36ff8c…)
• World Bank: Worldwide Governance Indicators: Rule of law (governance score 0-100), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 0bccc3c054e8…)
• World Bank: Worldwide Governance Indicators: Control of corruption (governance score 0-100), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 3b15a5340cdd…)
• World Bank: World Development Indicators: Seats held by women in national parliament (SG.GEN.PARL.ZS), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 1ae1dc13981a…)
• World Bank: World Development Indicators: Women in ministerial positions (SG.GEN.MNST.ZS), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 a4e448a5b8bd…)
• World Bank: World Development Indicators: Tax revenue (GC.TAX.TOTL.GD.ZS), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 08c94b750f31…)
• World Bank: World Development Indicators: Military spending (MS.MIL.XPND.GD.ZS), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 a7f6913a783b…)
• World Bank: World Development Indicators: Armed forces personnel (MS.MIL.TOTL.P1), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 fa4663c743ba…)
• World Bank: World Development Indicators: Statistical Performance Indicator (overall score) (IQ.SPI.OVRL), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 08ac7cde9129…)
• World Bank: World Development Indicators: People using the internet (IT.NET.USER.ZS), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 0d78dc658329…)

Each saved copy is the file exactly as downloaded, kept so the figures can be checked even if the source changes. Report an error.