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National People's Congress of the People's Republic of China .mw-parser-output .nobold{font-weight:normal} 中华人民共和国全国人民代表大会 Zhōnghuá Rénmín Gònghéguó Quánguó Rénmín Dàibiǎo Dàhuì
13th National People's Congress
Type
Type	Unicameral
History
Founded	1954
Leadership
Presidium of NPC	Presidium of the National People's Congress (Temporary, Elected before every session of NPC opens and finished after every session concludes) [1] since 4 March 2018 (at a preparatory meeting for 1st session of 13th NPC)
Executive Chairperson of Presidium of NPC	Li Zhanshu, Chen Xi, Wang Chen, Cao Jianming, Zhang Chunxian, Shen Yueyue, Ji Bingxuan, Alecken Eminbahe, CPC Wan Exiang, RCKMT Chen Zhu, CPWDP since 4 March 2018 (at 1st presidium meeting of 1st session of 13th NPC)
Secretary-General of NPC	Wang Chen, CPC since 4 March 2018 (at a preparatory meeting for 1st session of 13th NPC)
Chairman of NPCSC	Li Zhanshu, CPC since 17 March 2018
Secretary-General of NPCSC	Yang Zhenwu, CPC since 17 March 2018
Structure
Seats	Since 5 March 2018： 2980 Members of NPC 175 Members of NPCSC
NPC political groups	Since 24 February 2018: Government (2119):      CPC (2119) United Front, Pro-Beijing camp (Hong Kong) and Independent (861):      JS (64)      CDL (58)      CDNCA (57)      CAPD (55)      CPWDP (54)      RCCK (43)      CZGP (38)      TDSGL (13)      DAB (5)      FTU (2)      New Forum (1)      Roundtable (1)      Independent (470)
NPCSC political groups	Since 18 March 2018: Government (121):      CPC (121) United Front, and Independent (54):      CDL (9)      CAPD (7)      CPWDP (7)      RCCK (6)      JS (5)      CDNCA (3)      CZGP (3)      TDSGL (3)      Independent (11)
Length of term	5 years
Elections
NPC voting system	Party-list proportional representation and Approval voting[2]
NPCSC voting system	Party-list proportional representation and Approval voting[2]
NPC last election	December 2017 – January 2018
NPCSC last election	14 March 2013
NPC next election	Late 2022 – early 2023
NPCSC next election	18 March 2018
Redistricting	Standing Committee of the National People's Congress
Meeting place
The Auditorium of Ten Thousand People Great Hall of the People 人大会堂西路 - Ren Da Hui Tang Xi Lu Xicheng District, City of Beijing People's Republic of China
Website
http://www.npc.gov.cn

China
This article is part of a series on the politics and government of China
Leadership Leadership generations Succession of power Hu–Wen Administration (2002–2012) Xi–Li Administration (2012–2017) Xi Core Administration [zh] (since 2017) 4th Leadership Core: Xi Jinping 19th Party Politburo: Xi Jinping 13th State Council: Li Keqiang Current State leaders Current provincial leaders National leaders Orders of precedence Paramount leader: Xi Jinping Communist Party leader: Xi Jinping Head of state: Xi Jinping Head of government: Li Keqiang Congress Chairman: Li Zhanshu Conference Chairman: Wang Yang Commander-in-chief: Xi Jinping Politburo Standing Committee members Related systems Democratic centralism Collective leadership Organization Department Elections Civil service
Communist Party History Principal leaders Constitution Organization National Party Congress (19th) Central Committee (19th) General Secretary (list) Xi Jinping Central Politburo (19th) Standing Committee (list) Central Secretariat Top-ranked secretary: Wang Huning Central Military Commission Chairman: Xi Jinping Vice-Chairmen: Xu Qiliang, Zhang Youxia National Security Commission Chairman: Xi Jinping Vice-Chairmen: Li Keqiang, Li Zhanshu Office Chief: Ding Xuexiang Comprehensively Deepening Reforms Commission Director: Xi Jinping Deputy Directors: Li Keqiang, Wang Huning, Han Zheng Secretary-General: Wang Huning Financial & Economic Affairs Commission Director: Xi Jinping Deputy Director: Li Keqiang Office Chief: Liu He General Office Director: Ding Xuexiang General Secretary's Office [zh] Chief: Ding Xuexiang Central Security Bureau Central Guard Unit Office of the Central Secrecy Commission Organization Department Head: Chen Xi Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (19th) Secretary: Zhao Leji Provincial committee Standing committee Secretary Deputy secretaries
United Front Political Consultative Conference National Committee [zh] Chairman: Wang Yang Vice-Chairpersons Top-ranked: Zhang Qingli Secretary-General: Xia Baolong Political parties: CPC (ruling) United Front Work Department Head: You Quan RCCK CDL CDNCA CAPD CPWDP CZGP JS TDSGL Federation of Industry and Commerce People's organizations
Ideology Marxism–Leninism Mao Zedong Thought Socialism with Chinese characteristics Deng Xiaoping Theory Primary stage of socialism Four Cardinal Principles Three Represents Scientific Outlook on Development Harmonious Socialist Society Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era Chinese Dream Four Comprehensives
Constitution Law Constitution Previous constitutions 1954 1975 1978 "People's democratic dictatorship" (Article 1) Democratic centralism (Article 3) Constitutional oath of office (Article 27) Protection of human rights (Article 33) Freedom of religion (Article 36) Chinese legal system Civil law tradition Socialist law tradition Laws Legislation Law List of statutes General Principles of the Civil Law Marriage Law Labour law Labour Law Labour Contract Law Property law Property Law Intellectual property law Patent law Administrative law Administrative Procedure Law Criminal law Capital punishment Capital offences Death sentence with reprieve
Legislative National People's Congress (13th) Members Plenary sessions Voting results Presidium Standing Committee Chairman: Li Zhanshu Vice-Chairpersons Top-ranked: Wang Chen Secretary-General: Yang Zhenwu [zh] Members Special committees Ethnic Affairs Constitution and Law Supervisory and Judicial Affairs Financial and Economic Affairs Education, Science, Culture and Public Health Foreign Affairs Overseas Chinese Affairs Environment Protection and Resources Conservation Agriculture and Rural Affairs Social Development Affairs Legislation Law Elections
Presidency President (list): Xi Jinping Presidential spouse: Peng Liyuan Presidential Office [zh] Chief: Ding Xuexiang Vice-President: Wang Qishan
Executive State Council (Central People's Government) Li Keqiang Cabinet II Premier (list): Li Keqiang Vice-Premiers (list) Han Zheng Sun Chunlan Hu Chunhua Liu He State Councilors Wei Fenghe Wang Yong Wang Yi Xiao Jie Zhao Kezhi Secretary-General: Xiao Jie Cabinet-level departments National Development & Reform Commission Central bank National Audit Office General Office Secretary-General Deputy Secretary-Generals State-owned Assets Supervision & Administration Commission Most Central Enterprises
Military Central Military Commission (CMC) Chairman (supreme commander): Xi Jinping Vice-Chairmen: Xu Qiliang Zhang Youxia Members: Wei Fenghe Li Zuocheng Miao Hua Zhang Shengmin Departments: General Office Joint Staff Dept. Chief: Li Zuocheng Political Work Dept. Director: Miao Hua Logistic Support Dept. Equipment Development Dept. Training & Administration Dept. National Defense Mobilization Dept. Discipline Inspection Commission Secretary: Zhang Shengmin Politics & Legal Affairs Commission Science & Technology Commission Strategic Planning Office Reform & Organizational Structure Office Int'l Military Cooperation Office Audit Office Offices Administration Agency National armed forces: People's Liberation Army Theater commands  People's Armed Police  China Coast Guard  Militia State Council National Defense Mobilization Commission Chairman: Li Keqiang Ministry of National Defense Minister: Wei Fenghe Ministry of Veterans Affairs State Administration for Sci., Tech. & Industry for National Defense Military history Armed conflicts Military modernization Military reform since 2015 CMC Leading Group for Military Reform Leader: Xi Jinping
Supervision Corruption in China Anti-corruption campaign since 2012 CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (19th) Secretary: Zhao Leji Deputy Secretaries Yang Xiaodu Zhang Shengmin Liu Jinguo Yang Xiaochao Li Shulei Xu Lingyi Xiao Pei Chen Xiaojiang Secretary-General: Yang Xiaochao National Supervisory Commission Director: Yang Xiaodu Central Leading Group for Inspection Work Leader: Zhao Leji Commission for Discipline Inspection of the Central Military Commission Secretary: Zhang Shengmin Independent Commission Against Corruption (Hong Kong) Commission Against Corruption (Macau)
Judiciary Law enforcement CPC Central Politics and Law Commission Secretary: Guo Shengkun Supreme People's Court President: Zhou Qiang People's Courts Judicial Police [zh] Supreme People's Procuratorate Procurator-General: Zhang Jun People's Procuratorates Judicial Police [zh] State Council Ministry of Public Security Minister: Zhao Kezhi (State Councilor) Public Security Organs People's Police [zh] State Immigration Administration [zh] Local public security bureaus Ministry of State Security Minister: Chen Wenqing State Security Organs People's Police [zh] Ministry of Justice Minister: Fu Zhenghua Judicial Administrative Organs People's Police [zh] Bureau of Prison Administration [zh] Urban Management (chengguan) Judiciary of Hong Kong Court of Final Appeal Department of Justice Prosecutions Division Law enforcement in Hong Kong Security Bureau Regular Disciplined Services Hong Kong Police Force Judiciary of Macau Court of Final Appeal Public Prosecutions Office Secretariat for Security Macau Security Force Unitary Police Services [zh] Public Security Police Judiciary Police [zh]
Publicity Central Leading Group for Propaganda and Ideology Leader: Wang Huning Central Guidance Commission on Building Spiritual Civilization Director: Wang Huning Deputy Director: Huang Kunming Central Publicity (Propaganda) Department Head: Huang Kunming General Administration of Press and Publication National Film Bureau [zh] State Council Information Office China Daily Ministry of Culture and Tourism National Radio and Television Administration China Media Group China Central Television China Global Television Network China National Radio China Radio International Xinhua News Agency Reference News China News Service People's Daily Global Times China Today Censorship in China Radio jamming Media of China Internal media Publishing industry in China Internet in China Internet censorship Great Firewall Central Cyberspace Affairs Commission Director: Xi Jinping Deputy director: Li Keqiang Cyberspace Administration of China Director: Xu Lin
Hong Kong Macau Central Coordination Group for Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Leader: Han Zheng HK & Macau Affairs Office Director: Zhang Xiaoming Liaison Office in Hong Kong Liaison Office in Macau One country, two systems Special administrative regions Hong Kong Basic Law Chief Executive: Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor Hong Kong SAR Government Politics of Hong Kong Independence movement Mainland & HK CEPA Macao Basic Law Chief Executive: Chui Sai On Macau SAR Government Politics of Macau Mainland & Macau CEPA
Cross-Strait relations Cross-Strait relations Chinese Civil War One-China policy Political status of Taiwan Republic of China on Taiwan Taiwan Area "Taiwan Province", PRC Taiwan independence movement Anti-Secession Law Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement Cross-Strait Service Trade Agreement Chinese unification Central Leading Group for Taiwan Affairs Leader: Xi Jinping Deputy Leader: Wang Yang Taiwan Affairs Office Director: Zhang Zhijun Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Straits
Foreign relations Central Foreign Affairs Commission Director: Xi Jinping Deputy Director: Li Keqiang Secretary-General: Yang Jiechi Ministry of Foreign Affairs Minister: Wang Yi (State Councilor) Spokespersons Diplomatic missions Diplomatic missions of China / in China Foreign aid to China Chinese foreign aid International Development Cooperation Agency [zh] Ministry of Commerce Ministry of National Defense International Military Cooperation Office NPC Foreign Affairs Committee CPC International Liaison Department State Council Information Office State Administration of Foreign Experts Affairs Overseas Chinese Affairs Office Chinese nationality law Chinese passports (Hong Kong; Macau) Visa requirements for Chinese citizens (Hong Kong, Macau) Visa policy of China (Hong Kong; Macau) State Immigration Administration [zh] Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence Panda diplomacy Beijing Consensus Shanghai Cooperation Organisation Belt and Road Initiative Silk Road Fund Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank BRICS New Development Bank China and the United Nations China and the World Trade Organization China–Africa relations China–Caribbean relations China–European Union relations China–Russia relations China–United States relations
Related topics Administrative divisions Hukou system Family planning Ethnic minorities Democratic Centralism Communism
Other countries Atlas
v t e

The National People's Congress (usually abbreviated NPC) is the national legislature of the People's Republic of China. With 2,980 members in 2018, it is the largest parliamentary body in the world.^[3] The National People's Congress meets in full session for roughly two weeks each year and votes on important pieces of legislation, and members are considered to be part-time legislators and are not paid to serve in the NPC.

Much of the legislative power of the NPC is exercised by the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress which consists about 170 legislators and meets in continuous session. Members of the National People's Congress are allowed to simultaneously hold seats in other bodies of government and the party, and the NPC typically includes all of the senior officials in Chinese politics. By contrast, members of the NPCSC are not allowed to simulatenously hold positions in executive or judicial posts, and overlapping membership in the Politburo is typically limited to the chairman of the NPCSC.

Under China's Constitution, the NPC is structured as a unicameral legislature, with the de jure power to legislate, oversee the operations of the government, and elect the major officers of state. Western media sources commonly describe the NPC as a de facto rubber stamping body^{[4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13]} while some academic sources have asserted that the NPC has recently emerged as an independent and influential force in Chinese politics.^[14][15] The NPC had never rejected a government bill until 1986, during the Bankruptcy Law proceedings, wherein a revised bill was passed in the same session. An outright rejection without a revised version being passed occurred in 2000 when a Highway Law was rejected, the first occurrence in sixty years of history.^[16] Moreover in 2015, the NPC refused to pass a package of bills proposed by the State Council, insisting that each bill require a separate vote and revision process.^[17] In recent years, the NPC has made significant changes to draft legislation proposed by the government, and it is possible for legislation to be stalled by interest groups of political controversy^[18].

The NPC is elected for a term of five years. It holds annual sessions every spring, usually lasting from 10 to 14 days, in the Great Hall of the People on the west side of Tiananmen Square in Beijing. The NPC's sessions are usually timed to occur with the meetings of the National Committee of the People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), a consultative body whose members represent various social groups. As the NPC and the CPPCC are the main deliberative bodies of China, they are often referred to as the Lianghui (Two Sessions).^[19][20]

According to the NPC, its annual meetings provide an opportunity for the officers of state to review past policies and to present future plans to the nation.^[21]

Powers and duties

In theory, the NPC is the highest organ of state power in China, and all four PRC constitutions have vested it with great lawmaking powers. Most Western media have characterized the NPC as a rubber stamp for decisions already made by the state's executive organs and the Communist Party of China.^[22] One of its members, Hu Xiaoyan, told the BBC in 2009 that she has no power to help her constituents. She was quoted as saying, "As a parliamentary representative, I don't have any real power."^[23] In 2014, the CPC pledged to protect the NPC's right to "supervise and monitor the government," provided that the NPC continue to "unswervingly adhere" to the party's leadership.^[24] However this characterization is disputed, as the NPC has made significant changes to draft legislation. Since the 1990s, the NPC has become a forum for mediating policy differences between different parts of the Party, the government, and groups of society.

There are mainly four functions and powers of the NPC:^[25]

1. To amend the Constitution and oversee its enforcement

Only the NPC has the power to amend the Constitution. Amendments to the Constitution must be proposed by the NPC Standing Committee or 1/5 or more of the NPC deputies. In order for the Amendments to become effective, they must be passed by 2/3 majority vote of all deputies. In contrast with other jurisdictions by which constitutional enforcement is considered a judicial power, in Chinese political theory, constitutional enforcement is considered a legislative power, and Chinese courts do not have the authority to determine constitutionality of legislation or administrative measures. Challenges to constitutionality have therefore become the responsibility of the National People's Congress which has a recording and review mechanism for constitutional issues^[26]

2. To enact and amend basic law governing criminal offences, civil affairs, state organs and other matters

3. To elect and appoint members to the central state organs

The NPC elects the Chairman, Vice Chairmen, Secretary-General and other members of its Standing Committee. It also elects the President of the People's Republic of China and the Vice President of the People's Republic of China. NPC also appoints the Premier of the State Council and many other crucial officials to the central state organs. The NPC also has the power to remove the above-mentioned officials from the office.

4. To determine major state issues

This includes examining and approving the report on the plan for national economic and social development and on its implementation, report and central budget, and more. The establishment of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, the Macao Special Administrative Region, Hainan Province and Chongqing Municipality and the building of the Three Gorges Project on the Yangtze River were all decided by the NPC.

The drafting process of NPC legislation is governed by the Organic Law of the NPC (1982) and the NPC Procedural Rules (1989). It begins with a small group, often of outside experts, who begin a draft.^{[citation needed]} Over time, this draft is considered by larger and larger groups, with an attempt made to maintain consensus at each step of the process.^{[citation needed]} By the time the full NPC or NPCSC meets to consider the legislation, the major substantive elements of the draft legislation have largely been agreed to.^{[citation needed]} However, minor wording changes to the draft are often made at this stage. The process ends with a formal vote by the Standing Committee of the NPC or by the NPC in a plenary session.^{[citation needed]}However, it is not completely without influence. It functions as a forum in which legislative proposals are drafted and debated with input from different parts of the government and outside technical experts. However, there are a wide range of issues for which there is no consensus within the Party and over which different parts of the party or government have different opinions. Over these issues the NPC has often become a forum for debating ideas and for achieving consensus.^{[citation needed]}

In practice, although the final votes on laws of the NPC often return a high affirmative vote, a great deal of legislative activity occurs in determining the content of the legislation to be voted on. A major bill such as the Securities Law can take years to draft, and a bill sometimes will not be put before a final vote if there is significant opposition to the measure.^[27]

One important constitutional principle which is stated in Article 8 of the Legislation Law of the People's Republic of China is that an action can become a crime only as a consequence of a law passed by the full NPC and that other organs of the Chinese government do not have the power to criminalize activity. This principle was used to overturn police regulations on custody and repatriation^{[citation needed]} and has been used to call into question the legality of re-education through labor.^{[citation needed]}In practice, there is no mechanism to verify constitutionality of statute laws, meaning that local administrations could bypass the constitution through Administrative laws.^{[citation needed]}

Legislative process

The legislative process of the NPC works according to a five year work plan drafted by the Legislative Affairs Committee ^[28] Within the work plan, a specific piece of legislative is drafted by a group of legislators or administrative agencies within the State Council, these proposals are collected into a yearly agenda which outlines the work of the NPC in a particular year.^[29] This is followed by consultation by experts and approving in principle by the Communist Party. Afterwards, the legislation undergoes three readings and public consultation. The final approval is done in a plenary session in which by convention the vote is near unianmous.^[30]

The time for legislation can as short as six months, or as long as 15 years for controversial legislation such as the Anti-Monopoly Law^[31]

Proceedings

The NPC meets for about two weeks each year at the same time as the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, usually in the Spring. The combined sessions have been known as the two meetings. Between these sessions, power is exercised by the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress which contains about 150 members.

The sessions have become media events because it is at the plenary sessions that the Chinese leadership produces work reports. Although the NPC has thus far never failed to approve a work report or candidate nominated by the Party, these votes are no longer unanimous. It is considered extremely embarrassing for the approval vote to fall below 70%, which occurred several times in the mid-1990s. More recently, work reports have been vetted with NPC delegates beforehand to avoid this embarrassment.

In addition, during NPC sessions the Chinese leadership holds press conferences with foreign reporters, and this is one of the few opportunities Western reporters have of asking unscripted questions of the Chinese leadership.

A major bill often takes years to draft, and a bill sometimes will not be put before a final vote if there is significant opposition to the measure. An example of this is the Property Law of the People's Republic of China which was withdrawn from the 2006 legislative agenda after objections that the law did not do enough to protect state property. China's laws are usually submitted for approval after at most three reviews at the NPC Standing Committee. However, the debate of the Property Law has spanned nine years, receiving a record seven reviews at the NPC Standing Committee and stirring hot debates across the country. The long-awaited and highly contested Property Law was finally approved at the Fifth Session of the Tenth National People's Congress (NPC) on 16 March, 2007. Among the 2,889 deputies attending the closing session, 2,799 voted for it, 52 against it, 37 abstained and one didn't vote.

Election and membership

The NPC consists of about 3,000 delegates. Delegates to the National People's Congress are elected for five-year terms via a multi-tiered representative electoral system. Delegates are elected by the provincial people's assemblies, who in turn are elected by lower level assemblies, and so on through a series of tiers to the local people's assemblies which are directly elected by the electorate.

There is a limit on the number of candidates in proportion to the number of seats available. At the national level, for example, a maximum of 110 candidates are allowed per 100 seats; at the provincial level, this ratio is 120 candidates per 100 seats. This ratio increases for each lower level of people's assemblies, until the lowest level, the village level, has no limit on the number of candidates for each seat.^{[citation needed]} However, the Congress website says "In an indirect election, the number of candidates should exceed the number to be elected by 20% to 50%." The requirement that there be more candidates than seats contrasts with Soviet procedure in which the number of candidates were identical to the number of seats.

Membership of previous National People's Congresses

Sources:^{[32][33][34][35]}

Hong Kong and Macau delegations

Hong Kong has had a separate delegation since the 9th NPC in 1998, and Macau since the 10th NPC in 2003. The delegates from Hong Kong and Macau are elected via an electoral college rather than by popular vote, but do include significant political figures who are residing in the regions.^[36] The electoral colleges which elect Hong Kong and Macau NPC members are largely similar in composition to the bodies which elect the chief executives of those regions. In order to stand for election, the candidate must be validated by the Presidium of the electoral college and must agree to uphold the constitution of the PRC and the Basic Law. Each elector can vote for the number of seats from the qualified nominees.

Under the one country, two systems policy, the Communist Party of China does not operate in Hong Kong or Macau, and none of the delegates from Hong Kong and Macau are formally affiliated with the CCP. However, the electoral committee which elects the Hong Kong and Macau delegates are mainly supporters of the pro-Beijing pan-establishment camp, and so far, all of the candidates that have been elected from Hong Kong and Macau are from the pro-Beijing pan-establishment camp.

In contrast to Mainland China where a political opposition parties are not allowed, the political opposition controls about one quarter of the electoral college, opposition candidates have been allowed to run for NPC seats, although no opposition candidate has ever been elected. In the most recent election in 2017, the pan-democrats opposition declined to endorse candidates because they believed that constitutional changes made getting a seat useless.^[37] In this election, the Presidium refused to allow the candidacy of several Occupy and pro-independence candidates on the grounds that they refused to sign the electoral form pledging to uphold the constitution and the Basic Law. However, the Presidium did allow the candidacy of several moderate pan-democratic figures who were unable to be elected.

Although the pan-democratic opposition in Hong Kong does not have enough votes to elect an opposition candidate, they have expressed the belief that they have enough seats to influence which pro-Beijing figures can get elected.^[38]

The current method of electing SAR delegations began after the handovers of sovereignty to the PRC. Between 1975 and the handovers, both Hong Kong and Macau were represented by delegations elected by the Guangdong Provincial Congress.

Taiwan delegation

The NPC has included a "Taiwan" delegation since the 4th NPC in 1975, in line with the PRC's position that Taiwan is a province of China. Prior to the 2000s, the Taiwan delegates in the NPC were mostly Taiwanese members of the Chinese Communist Party who fled Taiwan after 1947. They are now either deceased or extremely old, and in the last three Congresses, only one of the "Taiwan" delegates was actually born in Taiwan (Chen Yunying, wife of economist Justin Yifu Lin); the remainder are "second-generation Taiwan compatriots", whose parents or grandparents came from Taiwan.^[39] The current NPC Taiwan delegation was elected by a "Consultative Electoral Conference" (协商选举会议) chosen at the last session of the 11th NPC.^[40]

The 12th National People's Congress held in 2013

People's Liberation Army delegation

The People's Liberation Army has had a large delegation since the founding of the NPC, making up anywhere from 4 percent of the total delegates (3rd NPC), to 17 percent (4th NPC). Since the 5th NPC, it has usually held about 9 percent of the total delegate seats, and is consistently the largest delegation in the NPC. In the 12th NPC, for example, the PLA delegation has 268 members; the next largest delegation is Shandong, with 175 members.^[41]

Ethnic Minorities and Overseas Chinese delegates

For the first three NPCs, there was a special delegation for returned overseas Chinese, but this was eliminated starting in the 4th NPC, and although overseas Chinese remain a recognized group in the NPC, they are now scattered among the various delegations. The PRC also recognizes 55 minority ethnic groups in China, and there is at least one delegate belonging to each of these groups in the current (12th) NPC.^[42][43] These delegates frequently belong to delegations from China's autonomous regions, such as Tibet and Xinjiang, but delegates from some groups, such as the Hui people (Chinese Muslims) belong to many different delegations.

Standing Committee

A permanent organ of the NPC and elected by the NPC deputies consisting of:^[44]

• Chairman


• Vice Chairpersons


• Secretary-General

Structure

Special committees

In addition to the Standing Committee, nine special committees have been established under the NPC to study issues related to specific fields. These committees include:

• Ethnic Affairs Committee


• 
  Constitution and Law Committee^[45]
  


• Internal and Judicial Affairs Committee


• Financial and Economic Affairs Committee


• Education, Science, Culture and Public Health Committee


• Foreign Affairs Committee


• Overseas Chinese Affairs Committee


• Environment Protection and Resources Conservation Committee


• Agriculture and Rural Affairs Committee

Administrative bodies

A number of administrative bodies have also been established to provide support for the work of the NPC. These include:

• General Office


• Legislative Affairs Commission


• Budgetary Affairs Commission


• Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Basic Law Committee


• Macao Special Administrative Region Basic Law Committee

Presidium

The Presidium of the NPC is a 178-member body of the NPC.^[46] It is composed of senior officials of the Communist Party of China (CPC), the state, non-Communist parties and All-China Federation of Industry and Commerce, those without party affiliation, heads of central government agencies and people's organizations, leading members of all the 35 delegations to the NPC session including those from Hong Kong and Macao and the People's Liberation Army.^[46] It nominates the President and Vice President of China, the Chairman, Vice-Chairman, and Secretary-General of the Standing Committee of the NPC, the Chairman of the Central Military Commission, and the President of the Supreme People's Court for election by the NPC.^[47] Its functions are defined in the Organic Law of the NPC, but not how it is composed.^[47]

Relationship with the ruling Communist Party of China

Under the Constitution of the People's Republic of China, the Communist Party of China is guaranteed a leadership role, and the National People's Congress therefore does not serve as a forum of debate between government and opposition parties as is the case with Western parliaments. At the same time, the Constitution makes the Party subordinate to laws passed by the National People's Congress, and the NPC has been the
forum for debates and conflict resolution between different interest groups. The Communist Party maintains control over the NPC by controlling delegate selection, maintaining control over the legislative agenda, and controlling the constitutional amendment process.

Role of Communist Party in delegate selection

The Great Hall of the People, where both the National People's Congress and the National Congress of the Communist Party of China convene.

The ruling Communist Party of China maintains control over the composition of people's congresses at various levels, especially the National People's Congress.^[48] At the local level, there is a considerable amount of decentralization in the candidate preselection process, with room for local in-party politics and for participation by non-Communist candidates. The structure of the tiered electoral system makes it difficult for a candidate to become a member of the higher level people's assemblies without the support from politicians in the lower tier, while at the same time making it impossible for the party bureaucracy to completely control the election process.

One such mechanism is the limit on the number of candidates in proportion to the number of seats available.^[49] At the national level, for example, a maximum of 110 candidates are allowed per 100 seats; at the provincial level, this ratio is 120 candidates per 100 seats. This ratio increases for each lower level of people's congresses, until the lowest level, the village level, has no limit on the number of candidates for each seat. However, the Congress website says "In an indirect election, the number of candidates should exceed the number to be elected by 20% to 50%."^[50] The practice of having more candidates than seats for NPC delegate positions has become standard, and it is different from Soviet practice in which all delegates positions were selected by the Party center.^[51] Although the limits on member selection allows the Party leadership to block unacceptable candidates, it also causes unpopular candidates to be removed in the electoral process. Direct and explicit challenges to the rule of the Communist Party are not tolerated, but are unlikely in any event due to the control the party center has on delegate selection.

Furthermore, the constitution of the National People's Congress provides for most of its power to be exercised on a day-to-day basis by its Standing Committee.^[52] Due to its overwhelming majority in the Congress, the Communist Party has total control over the composition of the Standing Committee, thereby allowing it to control actions of the National People's Congress. However, the Communist Party uses the National People's Congress as a mechanism to coordinate different interests, weigh different strategies and incorporate these views into draft legislation.^[53]

Although Party approval is in effect essential for membership in the NPC, approximately a third of the seats are by convention reserved for non-Communist Party members. This includes technical experts and members of the smaller allied parties.^[49] While these members do provide technical expertise and a somewhat greater diversity of views, they do not function as a political opposition.^[54]

Role of Communist Party in Legislative Process

Under Chinese law, the Communist Party is barred from directly introducing legislation into the NPC^[55] although the Party can ask that government ministries or individual members introduce legislation on behalf of the Party. The primary role of the Communist Party in the legislative process largely is exercised during the drafting phase of the legislation. Before the NPC considers legislation, there are working groups which study the proposed topic, and it is necessary for the Party leadership to agree "in principle" to any legislative changes. This process overlaps with the early drafting phase as particularly controversial or sensitive issues requires approval and consensus from the Party leadership.^[56]

Role of the Communist Party in Constitutional Amendments

The Communist Party leadership plays a particularly large role in the approval of constitutional amendments. In contrast to ordinary legislation, which the Communist Party leadership approves the legislation in principle, and in which the legislation is then introduced by government ministers or individual National People's Congress members, constitutional amendments are drafted and debated within the Communist Party, approved by the Central Committee of the Party and then presented to the National People's Congress.^[57] In contrast to ordinary legislation, in which the process is largely directed by the Legislation Law, the process for constitutional revision is largely described by Party documents.^[58] Unlike ordinary legislation in which the NPC routinely makes extensive revisions to legislative proposals which have bee introduced to it, the changes to constitutional amendments from the draft approved by the party have been minor.

Relationship with State Council

Relationship with local governments

In addition to passing legislation, the NPCSC interacts with local governments through its constitutional review process. In contrast to most Western nations, constitutional review is considered a legislative function and not a judicial one, and Chinese courts are not allowed to examine the constitutionality of legislation. The NPC has created a set of institutions which monitor local administrative measures for constitutionality.^[59] Typically, the Legislative Affairs Committee will review legislation for constitutionality and then inform the enacting agencies of its findings, and rely on the enacting agency to reverse its decision. Although the NPC has the legal authority to annul unconstitutional legislation by a local government, it has never used that power.^[60]

See also

• 
  Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC)


• 
  Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPCSC)


• Elections in the People's Republic of China


• List of voting results of the National People's Congress of China


• Politics of People's Republic of China


• National Assembly (Republic of China)


• 
  Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union (former equivalent)


• Supreme People's Assembly


• List of legislatures by country

References

External links

English

• NPC observer


• Full coverage of the 2017 NPC & CPPCC sessions


• 
  Full coverage of the 2016 NPC & CPPCC sessions - China.org.cn
  


• 
  Full coverage of the 2014 NPC & CPPCC sessions - China.org.cn
  


• English version of the Official website of the NPC


• NY Times article on the detainment of would-be petitioners to the NPC


• Information on National People's Congress and Standing Committee


• English version of the Standing Committee of Beijing Municipal People's Congress

Chinese

• The official website of the NPC


• 
  News on NPC, People's Daily Online
  


• Policies regarding the National People's Congress of the People's Republic of China


• The Standing Committee of Beijing Municipal People's Congress


• The official website of the Great Hall of People

Coordinates: 39°54′12″N 116°23′15″E / 39.90333°N 116.38750°E / 39.90333; 116.38750