Elections, Democratic Values, and Economic Development in Rural China

Abstract

This paper assesses several assumptions underlying the promotion of democracy and good governance in rural China. We draw on a 1999 survey of 120 villages in four counties, two in Anhui and two in Heilongjiang provinces (sample of 2,997 households, including villagers, cadres and entrepreneurs). First, we look at how institutionalized 'democratic procedures', such as secret ballots, multi-candidate elections, public nominations, and village contracts, are in these villages. Then we analyze villager views on economic development and democracy, finding that villagers want more democracy, even if the economy is doing well. Third, we assess their views on the election process; do they see elections as efficacious, fair, and competitive, or do they feel that the local power elite manipulate outcomes? Fourth, we found that the richest people are less supportive of democracy, with the most democratic being middle-income households. Finally, elections have increased local elite turnover, cadres understand this, and therefore, democracy does lead to good governance.

Why Village Election Has Not Much Improved Village Governance

“…Studies have produced mixed findings when it comes to village election's actual effect on village governance [13,15,26,29,48,71,74]. A recent study shows that village elections have produced more accountable village committees that increased the shares of public expenditures in the village budget [53].…”

Governance Innovations and Citizens’ Trust in Local Government: Electoral Impacts in China's Townships

“…Other forms of local democracy, such as village elections, participatory budgeting, or participatory public policy, may still serve to improve governance and boost public support for the governing body (Manion, 2006; Schubert, 2009). Village elections can be perceived by citizens to be fair, competitive, and effective in improving governance, even though they are still controlled by the Party (Landry et al , 2010; Su and Yang, 2005; Zweig and Chung, 2007). At the township level, Gunter Schubert (2008) finds that ‘open nomination and direct election’ of township heads can help the Party to harness public support.…”

Developing Rural Tourism: the PAT Program and ‘Nong jia le’ Tourism in China

“…In exploring the reasons behind the promotion of RT by the Chinese government, it is important to note that after the enormous rural economic boom generated by de‐collectivization (from 1978 to 1983) and the urban reforms in 1984, rural economic development struggled. Because of rapid urban economic growth in the mid‐ to late‐1980s, rural economic development slowed down and deteriorated, largely because the discrepancy between the prices of urban and rural goods, although narrower from 1978 to 1983, expanded significantly (Zweig and Fung, ). Thus, rural socio‐economic problems (such as the restructuring of agricultural economies from productivist to post‐productivist ones, the dwindling of income from traditional agriculture [as a result of diminishing land resources], and large‐scale rural‐to‐urban migration of the younger population) have greatly fueled farmers' desires to seek agricultural diversification through tourism, which is characterized by rusticity and is based on rural amenities and a rural way of life (Fleischer and Pizam, ; Guo, ).…”