Whole-Process People’s Democracy: Opening Up a New Realm of Human Political Civilization

Political civilization is an important component of human civilization. Building the modern civilization of the Chinese nation is inseparable from building a high-level socialist political civilization. Whole-process people’s democracy in contemporary China is a typical institutional form of socialist political civilization.

政治文明是人类文明的重要组成部分，建设中华民族现代文明离不开建设高度的社会主义政治文明。当代中国的全过程人民民主，是社会主义政治文明的典型制度形态。习近平总书记关于发展全过程人民民主的重要论述，立足时代高度，把握历史主动，总结实践经验，探索基本规律，把社会主义政治文明提升到一个新的时代高度。全过程人民民主，深刻回答和解决了人类政治文明面临的一系列重大问题，有力开辟了人类政治文明新境界，创造了人类政治文明新形态。

I. Whole-Process People’s Democracy Adheres to Taking the People as the Subject and Ensuring the People Are the Masters of the Country, Further Correcting the People-Oriented Direction of Human Political Civilization

一、全过程人民民主，坚持以人民为主体、保障人民当家作主，进一步校正人类政治文明人民性方向

In the long river of human civilization, political civilization is a concept that is both ancient and young. It is “ancient” because, ever since the emergence of the state, there has been political civilization in the true sense. “The state is the epitome of civilized society” [n1]; political civilization, primarily carried by the form and structure of the state, has a long history and is profound and extensive, playing a crucial role in guiding and promoting the continuation and progress of human civilization. It is “young” because, on the major question of “what kind of democratic politics to build and what path of political civilization to follow,” human understanding is not uniform, and many different views persist to this day. Different political parties, different countries, and different nations, due to differing values regarding democracy and the different economic bases they rely on, choose different paths of democratic development and establish different democratic political systems, thereby exerting complex influences that either promote or hinder human political civilization. What kind of political civilization does the world need? This remains a major question facing human society today that urgently requires an in-depth answer. General Secretary Xi Jinping profoundly pointed out: “How to transform democratic values and concepts into scientific and effective institutional arrangements, and into concrete and realistic democratic practices, requires an organic unity of history and reality, theory and practice, form and content, and finding the correct institutional mechanisms and methods.” [n2] In the New Era, the Chinese Communists, with Comrade Xi Jinping as their chief representative, have adhered to integrating Marxist democratic political theory with the concrete realities of contemporary China and with the fine traditional Chinese culture. On the basis of deeply summarizing the tremendous achievements and basic experience gained from the Party’s unremitting struggle for people’s democracy over more than 100 years, they have creatively put forward the major concept of developing whole-process people’s democracy, solidly advanced the practice of whole-process people’s democracy in various fields, and profoundly answered the major question of “who is the subject of democracy,” which concerns the direction of the development of human political civilization.

在人类文明历史长河中，政治文明是一个既古老而又年轻的概念。所谓“古老”，是因为自从有了国家，就有了真正意义上的政治文明。“国家是文明社会的概括”，主要以国家形态和国家形式为载体的政治文明源远流长、厚重博大，对人类文明的延续与进步发挥了至关重要的引领和推动作用。所谓“年轻”，是因为在“建设什么样的民主政治、走什么样的政治文明道路”这一重大问题上，人类的认识并不一致，至今存在着诸多不同的观点。不同政党、不同国家、不同民族，由于民主的价值理念不同，所依赖的经济基础不同，因而选择不同的民主发展道路、建立不同的民主政治制度，从而对人类政治文明产生或促进或阻碍作用的复杂影响。世界需要什么样的政治文明？这依然是当今人类社会面临的亟待深入回答的重大问题。习近平总书记深刻指出：“如何把民主价值和理念转化为科学有效的制度安排，转化为具体现实的民主实践，需要注重历史和现实、理论和实践、形式和内容有机统一，找到正确的体制机制和方式方法。”新时代以习近平同志为主要代表的中国共产党人，坚持把马克思主义民主政治理论同当代中国具体实际相结合、同中华优秀传统文化相结合，在深入总结100多年来我们党为人民民主不懈奋斗所取得的巨大成就和基本经验基础上，创造性地提出发展全过程人民民主重大理念，并在各个领域扎实推进全过程人民民主实践，深刻回答了“谁是民主的主体”这一关系人类政治文明发展方向的重大问题。

Politics in today’s world is party politics. The actions of political parties exert an extremely significant and complex influence on the process of human political civilization. Different political parties in different countries represent different classes, strata, and interest groups, implement different governance or ruling platforms, and thus choose different paths of democratic development and establish different political operating systems, leading to different democratic effects and political outcomes. The fundamental factor determining the different development directions of different political civilizations is, first and foremost, to see who is the center and who is the subject of democracy. The democratic system of capitalist countries, typified by American-style democracy, has inherent drawbacks that are difficult to overcome on this fundamental question of “who is the subject of democracy.” The two major parties in the United States represent the interests of their respective classes and interest groups. Manipulated by a small number of party elites, democracy has become increasingly distant from the working people and has degenerated into a tool for a few privileged strata and interest groups to seek personal gain, attack each other, and fool the people. This has led to a series of serious political and social problems, including political polarization, interest fragmentation, social division, and intensified racial discrimination. The acts of interference in the internal affairs of other countries, and even wars, launched by the U.S. rulers in the name of a “values alliance,” have severely damaged the world political order and brought numerous disasters to many countries and regions. Such political phenomena indicate that Western capitalist political civilization, which once made significant contributions to human political civilization, has, under the manipulation of bourgeois political parties and interest groups, fallen into a quagmire from which it is difficult to extricate itself. This also raises a major issue of global significance: How can human political civilization break free from the fetters of the “theory of the centrality of Western civilization” [n3] and achieve new development?

当今世界政治是政党政治，政党行为对人类政治文明进程产生极其重大而复杂的影响。不同国家的不同政党，代表不同的阶级阶层和利益集团，实行不同的施政或执政纲领，从而选择不同的民主发展道路、建立不同的政治运行制度，由此导致不同的民主效应和政治结果。而决定不同政治文明不同发展方向的根本因素，则首先要看以谁为中心、谁是民主的主体。以美式民主为典型代表的资本主义国家民主制，在“谁是民主的主体”这一根本问题上，存在着自身难以克服的弊端。美国两党代表的是各自阶级和利益集团的利益，在两党少数政客操纵下，民主离劳动人民越来越远，已经堕落成为少数特权阶层和利益集团谋取私利、相互攻击、愚弄人民的工具，由此导致政治极化、利益分化、社会撕裂、种族歧视加剧等一系列严重的政治和社会问题。美国统治者以“价值观同盟”的名义所发动的干涉别国内政的行为甚至战争，更是严重破坏了世界政治秩序，给不少国家和地区带来了重重灾难。如此种种政治现象表明，曾经为人类政治文明作出重大贡献的西方资本主义政治文明，在资产阶级政党和利益集团操控下，已经陷入了难以自拔的泥淖。这也提出了一个具有世界意义的重大课题：人类政治文明如何突破“西方文明中心论”的羁绊而实现新的发展？

The major concept of whole-process people’s democracy in contemporary China and its in-depth practice have profoundly deciphered and answered this major issue. The Chinese Communists, with Comrade Xi Jinping as their chief representative, standing at the height of the times, responding to the needs of the people, returning to the essence of the Marxist view of democracy, have clearly and unequivocally emphasized and insisted that the people are the subject of democracy. They have made “developing whole-process people’s democracy and ensuring the people are the masters of the country” the core content of China’s political civilization construction and an essential requirement of Chinese-path modernization, powerfully clarifying the fallacies on the fundamental question of “who is the subject of democracy” and profoundly pointing out the people-oriented direction of human political civilization. The core element of contemporary Chinese democratic politics is the strong leadership of the Communist Party of China. The CPC is the ruling party of socialist China and the strong leading core of socialism with Chinese characteristics. The most fundamental reason why the CPC can hold high the great banner of people’s democracy and unswervingly develop whole-process people’s democracy is that the Party is both the vanguard of the Chinese working class and the vanguard of the Chinese people and the Chinese nation. “The Party has always represented the fundamental interests of the vast majority of the people, sharing weal and woe and life and death with the people, and has no special interests of its own. It has never represented any interest group, any power group, or any privileged stratum.” [n4] These three “never represents” are the decisive political logic for adhering to taking the people as the subject in developing democratic politics and building political civilization.

当代中国的全过程人民民主重大理念及其深入实践，深刻破解和回答了这一重大课题。以习近平同志为主要代表的中国共产党人，立足时代高度，顺应人民需求，回归马克思主义民主观本质，旗帜鲜明地强调和坚持人民是民主的主体，把“发展全过程人民民主，保障人民当家作主”作为我国政治文明建设的核心内容，作为中国式现代化的本质要求，有力澄清了在“谁是民主的主体”这一根本问题上存在的谬误，深刻指明了人类政治文明的人民性方向。当代中国民主政治的核心要素是中国共产党的坚强领导。中国共产党是社会主义中国的执政党，是中国特色社会主义的坚强领导核心。中国共产党之所以能高举人民民主伟大旗帜，坚定不移发展全过程人民民主，最根本的原因就在于，党既是中国工人阶级的先锋队，又是中国人民和中华民族的先锋队，“党始终代表最广大人民根本利益，与人民休戚与共、生死相依，没有任何自己特殊的利益，从来不代表任何利益集团、任何权势团体、任何特权阶层的利益”。这三个“从不代表”，是坚持以人民为主体发展民主政治、建设政治文明的决定性政治逻辑。

The original meaning of democracy is “the power of the people” or “rule by the people.” Marx profoundly pointed out: “The word ‘democratic’ means ‘the people are in power’ in German.” “In monarchy it is the people of the state system; in democracy it is the state system of the people.” The position of the people in the state system—whether they occupy a subject position or a subordinate position, whether they become the center of the state system or are marginalized—is the fundamental criterion for judging the nature and quality of democracy, and also the fundamental factor determining the nature and direction of political civilization. The people being the masters of the country is the essential attribute of socialist democratic politics and the fundamental hallmark of socialist political civilization. The most fundamental point that distinguishes socialist political civilization from and makes it superior to capitalist political civilization is that it very clearly and consistently upholds that the people are the subject of democracy and the core of political civilization. This is the consistent political stance of the Chinese Communists and the logical starting point of the unique democratic view embedded in Chinese-path modernization. On this great land of the East, democracy, from ideological theory to social practice, from partial practice to comprehensive practice, from value concepts to institutional forms, from institutional systems to governance mechanisms, comprehensively upholds and manifests the status and rights of the people as masters of the country. It runs through the entire process of the Party leading the people in revolution, construction, and reform, covers all links of governing the country, and is reflected in all aspects of economic and social development. This is nothing less than a fundamental transformation in China since modern times and a great contribution of the Chinese Communist Party to the Chinese nation. In leading the great practice of opening up socialism with Chinese characteristics for a New Era, General Secretary Xi Jinping incisively put forward the “people-centered development thought,” elevating the construction of democratic politics with the people as the subject and socialist political civilization to a new height of the times. The reason why China’s whole-process people’s democracy is “the broadest, most genuine, and most effective democracy” lies in the core essence that this democratic process consistently adheres to being people-centered. Closely centering on ensuring the people are the masters of the country, whole-process people’s democracy has not only complete institutional procedures but also complete participatory practices, forming a comprehensive, extensive, and organically connected institutional system for the people being the masters of the country, and constructing diverse, smooth, and orderly democratic channels. All the people, in accordance with the law, practice democratic elections, democratic consultations, democratic decision-making, democratic management, and democratic supervision, and manage state affairs, economic and cultural undertakings, and social affairs through various channels and forms in accordance with the law. Such a whole-process people’s democracy achieves the unity of procedural democracy and substantive democracy, procedural democracy and substantive democracy, direct democracy and indirect democracy, and people’s democracy and the will of the state. It is a full-chain, all-encompassing, and full-coverage democracy, and therefore it is the broadest, most genuine, and most effective democracy. It is in this fundamental sense that whole-process people’s democracy has expanded the new horizons of socialist political civilization and created a new form of human political civilization.

民主的本意是“人民的权力”或“人民进行统治”。马克思深刻指出：“‘民主的’这个词在德语里意思是‘人民当权的’。”“在君主制中是国家制度的人民；在民主制中则是人民的国家制度。”人民在国家制度中居于何种位置，是居于主体地位还是附庸地位，是成为国家制度的中心还是被边缘化，这是判断民主的性质和质量的根本标准，也是决定政治文明性质和方向的根本因素。人民当家作主是社会主义民主政治的本质属性，也是社会主义政治文明的根本标志。社会主义政治文明区别于、优越于资本主义政治文明的最根本之点，就是非常明确并始终坚持人民是民主的主体、是政治文明的核心。这是中国共产党人的一贯政治立场，是中国式现代化蕴含的独特民主观的逻辑起点。在中国这块东方大地上，民主从思想理论到社会实践、从局部实践到全局实践、从价值理念到制度形态、从制度体系到治理机制，全方位地坚持和彰显人民当家作主的地位和权利，贯穿党领导人民进行革命、建设、改革的全过程，覆盖治国理政的各环节，体现在经济社会发展的各方面，这不啻为近代以来中国发生的根本巨变，是中国共产党对中华民族的伟大贡献。在领导开辟新时代中国特色社会主义伟大实践中，习近平总书记精辟提出“坚持以人民为中心的发展思想”，把以人民为主体的民主政治建设和社会主义政治文明提升到一个新的时代高度。中国全过程人民民主之所以是“最广泛、最真实、最管用的民主”，核心要义就在于这一民主过程始终坚持以人民为中心。紧紧围绕保障人民当家作主，全过程人民民主不仅有完整的制度程序，而且有完整的参与实践，形成了全面、广泛、有机衔接的人民当家作主制度体系，构建了多样、畅通、有序的民主渠道。全体人民依法实行民主选举、民主协商、民主决策、民主管理、民主监督，依法通过各种途径和形式管理国家事务，管理经济和文化事业，管理社会事务。这样一种全过程人民民主，实现了过程民主和成果民主、程序民主和实质民主、直接民主和间接民主、人民民主和国家意志相统一，是全链条、全方位、全覆盖的民主，因而是最广泛、最真实、最管用的民主。正是在这个根本意义上，全过程人民民主拓展了社会主义政治文明新视野、创造了人类政治文明新形态。

Adhering to taking the people as the subject and坚守 the people-oriented direction of political civilization has fundamental significance for steering the course of the historical process of Chinese-path modernization. Chinese-path modernization is a new type of modernization led by the Chinese Communist Party with the people as the subject. The decisive factor enabling Chinese-path modernization to break the myth of “modernization = Westernization,” transcend the limitations of Western modernization, expand the path choices for developing countries to achieve modernization, and provide a successful plan for humanity to explore better social systems is precisely adhering to the people-oriented direction of modernization. General Secretary Xi Jinping profoundly pointed out: “To build a great modern socialist country in all respects, the people are the decisive force.” “The people are the creators of history and the firmest foundation and deepest strength for advancing modernization. The ultimate goal of modernization is to realize the free and comprehensive development of people. Whether the path of modernization can ultimately be smooth and stable depends on whether it adheres to being people-centered.” Chinese-path modernization is a new form of human civilization, and its people-oriented direction fundamentally represents the development direction of human political civilization. Developing whole-process people’s democracy is an essential requirement of Chinese-path modernization, and continuously improving the level of institutionalization, standardization, and proceduralization of whole-process people’s democracy is a major task for the continuous development of Chinese-path modernization. The people-oriented direction of Chinese-path modernization inherently endows whole-process people’s democracy with a people-oriented foundation, providing a Chinese plan for humanity’s exploration of a better political system and showcasing a completely new development prospect for human political civilization.

坚持以人民为主体、坚守政治文明人民性方向，对于中国式现代化历史进程具有把航定向的根本性意义。中国式现代化是中国共产党领导的以人民为主体的新型现代化。中国式现代化之所以能打破“现代化=西方化”的迷思，超越西方现代化的局限，拓展发展中国家走向现代化的路径选择，为人类探索更好社会制度提供了成功方案，决定性因素就是坚持现代化的人民性方向。习近平总书记深刻指出：“全面建成社会主义现代化强国，人民是决定性力量。”“人民是历史的创造者，是推进现代化最坚实的根基、最深厚的力量。现代化的最终目标是实现人自由而全面的发展。现代化道路最终能否走得通、行得稳，关键要看是否坚持以人民为中心。”中国式现代化是人类文明的新样式，中国式现代化的人民性方向，从根本上代表了人类政治文明的发展方向。发展全过程人民民主是中国式现代化的一项本质要求，不断提高全过程人民民主制度化、规范化、程序化水平，是中国式现代化接续发展的一项重大任务。中国式现代化的人民性方向，内在赋予全过程人民民主以人民性底蕴，为人类对美好政治制度的探索提供了中国方案，展示了人类政治文明全新的发展前景。

II. Whole-Process People’s Democracy, Adhering to Taking Institutions as the Guarantee, Promoting Institutional Reform and Innovation, Further Strengthening the Institutional Foundation of Human Political Civilization

二、全过程人民民主，坚持以制度为保障、推进制度改革创新，进一步强固人类政治文明制度性根基

Democracy is both a value concept and an institutional form; and any value concept of democracy is embodied and realized through institutional arrangements of a certain form and content. Marx profoundly pointed out: “Democracy is the state system as a concept of genus.” Lenin clearly pointed out: “Democracy is a form of the state, a form of the state system.” It is precisely the essential attribute of democracy as an institution that constitutes the magnificent historical process of human political civilization, with institutional change and replacement as its main content. The crux of the issue lies in what kind of democratic system is a good system and can play a positive role in promoting human political civilization. The history of democratic development shows that institutions are created by people. Who controls institutions and whom they serve is the core issue in the process of human political civilization. “It is not the state system that creates the people, but the people who create the state system.” The people become the masters and subjects of the state system, and by developing democracy, they continuously consolidate and improve the state system in which the people are the masters of the country, thereby better safeguarding the interests of the broadest masses of the people. This is the essence and substance of socialist political civilization. China’s whole-process people’s democracy, precisely in this essential sense of using the institutional system to ensure the people are the masters of the country, has opened up a new realm of socialist political civilization and created a new form of human political civilization.

民主既是一种价值理念，又是一种制度形态；而任何一种民主的价值理念，都是通过一定形式和内容的制度安排来体现和实现的。马克思深刻指出：“民主制是作为类概念的国家制度。”列宁明确指出：“民主是国家形式，是国家形态的一种。”正是民主的制度本质属性，构成了以制度变革和更迭为主要内容的波澜壮阔的人类政治文明历史进程。问题的关键在于，究竟什么样的民主制度才是好的制度、才能对人类政治文明发挥积极推动作用？民主发展史表明，制度是由人创造的，制度为谁掌握、为谁服务，这是人类政治文明进程的核心问题。“不是国家制度创造人民，而是人民创造国家制度。”人民成为国家制度的主人和主体，通过发展民主不断巩固和完善人民当家作主的国家制度，从而更好地保障最广大人民利益，这就是社会主义政治文明的本质和实质。我国全过程人民民主，正是在用制度体系保障人民当家作主这一本质要义上，开辟了社会主义政治文明新境界，创造了人类政治文明新形态。

The fundamental basis and internal logic for why China’s socialist democracy is whole-process people’s democracy and why it has vigorous vitality and strong cohesion lies in the fact that it is a “full-chain” type of institutionalized democracy. From the operation of state organs to grassroots social governance, from major legislative decisions to governance according to law and regulations, from the restriction of public power to the protection of people’s rights, from democratic elections to democratic consultations, from democratic decision-making to democratic management, from democratic participation to democratic supervision, an organically linked and benignly interactive institutional chain has been formed. Such a complete “democratic institutional chain” effectively guarantees the rights and interests of the people as masters of the country, achieving the unity of procedural democracy and substantive democracy, procedural democracy and substantive democracy, direct democracy and indirect democracy, and people’s democracy and the will of the state. Therefore, it is the broadest, most genuine, and most effective democracy. The complete “democratic institutional chain” has inherently enhanced the connotation of China’s political civilization and effectively strengthened the influence and guiding power of socialist political civilization over human political civilization. Facing the changes unseen in a century in today’s world and increasingly fierce international competition, General Secretary Xi Jinping profoundly pointed out: “Institutional competition is an important aspect of comprehensive national power competition, and institutional advantage is an important advantage for a country to gain strategic initiative. Both history and reality show that when institutions are stable, the country is stable; when institutions are strong, the country is strong.”

中国社会主义民主之所以是全过程人民民主，之所以具有旺盛生命力和强大凝聚力，根本依据和内在逻辑就在于这是一种“全链条”式的制度化民主。从国家机构运行到基层社会治理、从重大立法决策到依法依规治理、从公共权力制约到人民权利保障、从民主选举到民主协商、从民主决策到民主管理、从民主参与到民主监督，形成了一个有机联系、良性互动的制度链条。这样一种完整的“民主制度链”，有效保证了人民当家作主权益，实现了过程民主和成果民主、程序民主和实质民主、直接民主和间接民主、人民民主和国家意志相统一，因而是最广泛、最真实、最管用的民主。完整的“民主制度链”，内在提升了我国政治文明内涵，有力增强了社会主义政治文明对人类政治文明的影响力和引导力。面对当今世界百年未有之大变局和日趋激烈的国际竞争，习近平总书记深刻指出：“制度竞争是综合国力竞争的重要方面，制度优势是一个国家赢得战略主动的重要优势。历史和现实都表明，制度稳则国家稳，制度强则国家强。”

Electoral democracy, for which the people’s congresses serve as the important institutional carrier, is the fundamental institutional guarantee for developing whole-process people’s democracy. Electoral democracy is a major achievement of human political civilization and the fundamental institutional procedure for realizing popular sovereignty. Unlike the parliamentary system in Western countries, China’s people’s congresses do not represent the rights and interests of a particular political party or certain interest groups; rather, they represent the rights and interests of the people of all ethnic groups across the country, are deeply rooted among the people, and profoundly embody the essence of socialist political civilization, namely that the people are the subject of democracy. The practice of China’s political development has profoundly demonstrated that the system of people’s congresses is an important institutional carrier for perfecting democratic elections and ensuring popular sovereignty, an important institutional carrier for adhering to democratic legislation and achieving good laws and good governance, and an important institutional carrier for strengthening democratic oversight and constraining public power. In short, it is “an important institutional carrier for realizing China’s whole-process people’s democracy.” [6]6 This quotation is from General Secretary Xi Jinping’s speech at the Central People’s Congress Work Conference, October 13, 2021. The report to the 20th National Congress of the CPC [7]7 The 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China was held in Beijing in October 2022. clearly states that on the new journey of Chinese-path modernization, it is necessary to further strengthen the construction of the people’s congress system, “support and ensure that the people exercise state power through the people’s congresses, and ensure that all levels of people’s congresses are democratically elected, accountable to the people, and subject to their oversight,” thereby “ensuring that the people, in accordance with the law, manage state affairs, economic and cultural undertakings, and social affairs through various channels and forms.”

以人民代表大会为重要制度载体的选举民主，是发展全过程人民民主的根本制度保障。选举民主是人类政治文明的重要成果，是实现人民主权的根本制度程序。与西方国家的议会制不同，中国的人民代表大会不是代表某个政党和某些利益集团的权益，而是代表全国各族人民的权益，深深植根于人民之中，深刻体现了人民是民主的主体这一社会主义政治文明的本质。中国政治发展实践深刻表明，人民代表大会制度是完善民主选举、确保人民主权的重要制度载体，是坚持民主立法、实现良法善治的重要制度载体，是加强民主监督、制约公共权力的重要制度载体，总之，“是实现我国全过程人民民主的重要制度载体”。党的二十大报告明确指出，在中国式现代化新征程上，必须进一步加强人民代表大会制度建设，“支持和保证人民通过人民代表大会行使国家权力，保证各级人大都由民主选举产生、对人民负责、受人民监督”，从而“确保人民依法通过各种途径和形式管理国家事务，管理经济和文化事业，管理社会事务”。

Consultative democracy, for which the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) serves as the important institutional platform, is the basic institutional channel for developing whole-process people’s democracy. The system of consultative democracy is China’s basic political system and “an important form for practicing whole-process people’s democracy,” representing a unique embodiment of Chinese-style democracy. Through multiple channels of democratic consultation, including consultation between political parties, consultation in people’s congresses, consultation in government, consultation in the CPPCC, consultation among people’s organizations, consultation at the grassroots level, and consultation among social organizations, the people’s will is fully respected, popular wisdom is extensively pooled, and democratic consensus is enhanced. This can effectively ensure the full expression and genuine realization of the people’s right to be masters of the country. The CPPCC is the specialized consultative body for socialist consultative democracy and an important institutional platform for developing whole-process people’s democracy. It plays an overarching and critical role in the comprehensive development of the consultative democracy system. The report to the 20th National Congress of the CPC clearly states that on the new journey of Chinese-path modernization, it is necessary to “comprehensively develop consultative democracy,” “improve the system of consultative democracy,” and “improve various institutionalized consultation platforms to promote the extensive, multi-tiered, and institutionalized development of consultative democracy”; it is necessary to fully “give play to the role of the CPPCC as a specialized consultative body, strengthen the construction of functions such as institutionalization, standardization, and proceduralization, enhance the level of in-depth consultative interaction, full expression of opinions, and extensive consensus building, and improve the CPPCC’s democratic oversight and the institutional mechanism for committee members to connect with people from different sectors.”

以人民政协为重要制度平台的协商民主，是发展全过程人民民主的基本制度渠道。协商民主制度是中国的基本政治制度，“是实践全过程人民民主的重要形式”，是中国式民主的独特体现。通过政党协商、人大协商、政府协商、政协协商、人民团体协商、基层协商、社会组织协商等多种民主协商渠道，充分尊重民意、广泛集中民智、增进民主共识，可以有效保证人民当家作主权利的充分表达和真实实现。人民政协是社会主义协商民主的专门协商机构，是发展全过程人民民主的重要制度平台，在全面发展协商民主制度体系中起着全局性、关键性作用。党的二十大报告明确指出，在中国式现代化新征程上，必须“全面发展协商民主”“完善协商民主体系”，“健全各种制度化协商平台，推进协商民主广泛多层制度化发展”；必须充分“发挥人民政协作为专门协商机构作用，加强制度化、规范化、程序化等功能建设，提高深度协商互动、意见充分表达、广泛凝聚共识水平，完善人民政协民主监督和委员联系界别群众制度机制”。

Grassroots democracy, for which self-governance by the masses serves as the important institutional pathway, is an important institutional embodiment of whole-process people’s democracy. China’s socialist democracy is an organic unity of direct democracy and indirect democracy. The system of grassroots self-governance by the masses is the fundamental channel for developing direct democracy and an important embodiment of whole-process people’s democracy. Through institutionalized participation channels and platforms, ensuring that the masses extensively participate in grassroots democratic practices, stimulating their initiative, proactiveness, and creative vitality in using democratic rights to improve people’s livelihoods and promote development, and building a political and social community where everyone has responsibility, everyone fulfills their duties, and everyone enjoys benefits—this is a vivid manifestation of the broad mass foundation and strong vitality of whole-process people’s democracy. The report to the 20th National Congress of the CPC clearly states that on the new journey of Chinese-path modernization, it is necessary to further “improve the mechanism for grassroots self-governance led by grassroots Party organizations, strengthen grassroots organizational construction, improve the system and work mechanisms of direct democracy at the grassroots level, and enhance the effectiveness of self-management, self-service, self-education, and self-oversight by the masses in urban and rural communities,” ensuring the genuine realization of the people’s right to be masters of the country in a wide range of social life fields.

以群众自治为重要制度路径的基层民主，是发展全过程人民民主的重要制度体现。中国社会主义民主是直接民主与间接民主的有机统一，基层群众自治制度是发展直接民主的根本渠道，是全过程人民民主的重要体现。通过制度化的参与渠道和参与平台，确保人民群众广泛参与基层民主实践，激发运用民主权利改善民生、促进发展的积极性、主动性和创造活力，建设人人有责、人人尽责、人人享有的政治和社会共同体，是全过程人民民主具有广泛群众基础和强大生命力的生动体现。党的二十大报告明确指出，在中国式现代化新征程上，必须进一步“健全基层党组织领导的基层群众自治机制，加强基层组织建设，完善基层直接民主制度和工作体系，增强城乡社区群众自我管理、自我服务、自我教育、自我监督的实效”，在广泛的社会生活领域确保人民当家作主权利的真实实现。

Starting from institutional design, China’s whole-process people’s democracy organically integrates electoral democracy, consultative democracy, and grassroots democracy, and seamlessly connects democratic elections, democratic consultation, democratic decision-making, democratic management, and democratic oversight, thereby achieving all-round and full-coverage democracy. This has effectively strengthened the role of political civilization in guaranteeing and promoting economic development, cultural prosperity, social progress, ecological friendliness, and other fields. Such a process of democratic political construction and political civilization advancement possesses continuity in time, integrity in content, coordination in operation, and breadth and sustainability in popular participation. As a result, the operation of state institutions and all aspects of social life can reflect the people’s will, hear the people’s voices, protect the people’s rights and interests, and stimulate the people’s creative vitality. Such a process of democratic political construction and political civilization advancement effectively prevents and avoids the drawbacks of the Western political system, which treats electoral democracy as the sole form—making lavish promises during elections but neglecting them afterward, with voters only awakened when casting their ballots and entering a “dormant” state after voting. This is the greatest advantage of Chinese-style democracy, and it is continuously demonstrating immense value for political civilization in the contemporary process of human political civilization.

中国的全过程人民民主从制度设计出发，把选举民主、协商民主、基层民主有机地结合起来，把民主选举、民主协商、民主决策、民主管理、民主监督有机地贯通起来，从而实现了民主的全方位和全覆盖，有力增强了政治文明对经济发展、文化繁荣、社会进步、生态友好等各个领域的保障和促进作用。这样一种民主政治建设和政治文明进程，具有时间上的连续性、内容上的整体性、运行上的协调性、人民参与的广泛性和持续性，从而使国家机构运行和社会生活各方面都能体现人民的意志、听到人民的声音、保障人民的权益、激发人民的创造活力。这样一种民主政治建设和政治文明进程，有效防止和避免了西方政治制度将选举民主当成唯一形式，选举时漫天许诺、选举后无人过问，选民只有在投票时被唤醒、投票后即进入“休眠”状态的弊端。这是中国式民主的最大优势，在当代人类政治文明进程中正不断彰显出巨大的政治文明价值。

The core of political civilization lies in institutional civilization, and the essence of institutional civilization lies in reform and innovation. The proposal and solid advancement of the major concept of whole-process people’s democracy are precisely the result of the CPC’s unremitting efforts to promote institutional reform and innovation. The Party has led the people in embarking on a great journey of unswervingly deepening institutional reform and innovation, and establishing and consolidating the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics. “The practice of reform and opening up over the past 40 years has taught us that institutions are fundamental, overarching, stable, and long-term issues concerning the development of the Party and the country.” [8]8 This quotation is from Xi Jinping’s speech at the celebration of the 40th anniversary of reform and opening up, December 18, 2018. It is precisely by firmly grasping this fundamental task of institutional reform and innovation that reform and opening up has effectively promoted the establishment, improvement, and gradual perfection of the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics. Institutional modernization has effectively supported and advanced economic and social modernization. Within the reform and innovation of the institutional system, the most critical and important aspect is the reform and innovation of the political system. General Secretary Xi Jinping has profoundly pointed out: “The political system of a country is determined by its economic and social base, and in turn reacts upon, and even plays a decisive role in, that economic and social base. Among the various systems of a country, the political system occupies a key position. Therefore, to strengthen confidence in the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics, we must first strengthen confidence in the political system of socialism with Chinese characteristics, and enhance our confidence and determination to follow the political development path of socialism with Chinese characteristics.” [9]9 This quotation is from Xi Jinping’s speech at the Central People’s Congress Work Conference, October 13, 2021.

政治文明的核心在于制度文明，而制度文明的要义在于改革创新。全过程人民民主重大理念的提出和扎实推进，正是中国共产党坚持不懈推进制度改革创新的结果。党领导人民开启了坚定不移深化体制改革和制度创新、建立和巩固中国特色社会主义制度的伟大征程。“改革开放40年的实践启示我们：制度是关系党和国家事业发展的根本性、全局性、稳定性、长期性问题。”正是牢牢抓住制度改革创新这一根本任务，改革开放有力促进了中国特色社会主义制度体系的建立健全和逐步完善，制度现代化有力支撑和推进了经济社会现代化。在制度体系改革创新中，最关键、最重要的又是政治制度改革创新。习近平总书记深刻指出：“一个国家的政治制度决定于这个国家的经济社会基础，同时又反作用于这个国家的经济社会基础，乃至于起到决定性作用。在一个国家的各种制度中，政治制度处于关键环节。所以，坚定中国特色社会主义制度自信，首先要坚定对中国特色社会主义政治制度的自信，增强走中国特色社会主义政治发展道路的信心和决心。”

Since the 18th National Congress of the CPC, the Party Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core, in the great practice of leading the people to open up a New Era of socialism with Chinese characteristics, has consistently taken deepening institutional reform and innovation as the core task of modernization, and has placed the promotion of political system reform and innovation and the elevation of the level of modernization of the national governance system and governance capacity in a prominent position. The Third Plenary Session of the 18th CPC Central Committee [10]10 The Third Plenary Session of the 18th CPC Central Committee, held in November 2013, was a landmark meeting that set the agenda for comprehensively deepening reform across all sectors. held in October 2013 took “improving and developing the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics and advancing the modernization of the national governance system and governance capacity” as the “overall goal” of comprehensively deepening reform, thereby “opening up a New Era of comprehensively deepening reform and advancing reform through systemic overall design, and creating an entirely new situation for China’s reform and opening up.” The Fourth Plenary Session of the 19th CPC Central Committee [11]11 The Fourth Plenary Session of the 19th CPC Central Committee, held in October 2019, focused specifically on upholding and improving the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics and advancing the modernization of the national governance system and governance capacity. held in October 2019, for the first time, put forward the concept of “institutional governance efficacy,” emphatically stressing “upholding and improving the fundamental systems, basic systems, and important systems that support the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics, focusing on consolidating the foundation, strengthening advantages, making up for shortcomings, and reinforcing weak links, building a system of institutions that is complete, scientifically standardized, and effective in operation, strengthening systemic governance, law-based governance, comprehensive governance, and source governance, better transforming China’s institutional advantages into national governance efficacy, and providing a strong guarantee for realizing the ‘Two Centenary Goals’ [12]12 The Two Centenary Goals are the strategic objectives of building a moderately prosperous society in all respects by the centenary of the CPC in 2021 and building a modern socialist country that is prosperous, strong, democratic, culturally advanced, and harmonious by the centenary of the People’s Republic of China in 2049. and realizing the Chinese Dream of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.” The Third Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee [13]13 The Third Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee, held in July 2024, focused on further comprehensively deepening reform and advancing Chinese-path modernization. made strategic deployments for further comprehensively deepening reform and advancing Chinese-path modernization, profoundly expounded the great significance, guiding ideology, overall goal, and important principles of further comprehensively deepening reform, and emphasized the need to “adhere to taking institutional construction as the main thread, strengthen top-level design and overall planning, establish and abolish simultaneously, establish before abolishing, consolidate fundamental systems, perfect basic systems, and innovate important systems.” Institutional reform and innovation in the New Era has manifested many new connotations and new characteristics, the most important of which is that the “goal orientation” of institutional reform and innovation has become clearer, namely comprehensively building a modern socialist country; the “content axis” of institutional reform and innovation has become clearer, namely comprehensively advancing the modernization of the national governance system and governance capacity. It is precisely in the reform and innovation of elevating institutional civilization that the major concept of whole-process people’s democracy has been formed and developed, and the major practice of whole-process people’s democracy has been solidly advanced. The continuously deepening institutional reform and innovation in the New Era marks that our Party’s understanding and grasp of the institutionalized essence of human political civilization has reached a new level.

党的十八大以来，以习近平同志为核心的党中央在领导人民奋力开创中国特色社会主义新时代伟大实践中，持之以恒地把深化体制改革和制度创新作为现代化建设的核心任务，把推进政治制度改革创新、提升国家治理体系和治理能力现代化水平摆在突出位置。2013年10月召开的党的十八届三中全会，把“完善和发展中国特色社会主义制度，推进国家治理体系和治理能力现代化”作为全面深化改革的“总目标”，由此“开启了全面深化改革、系统整体设计推进改革的新时代，开创了我国改革开放全新局面”。2019年10月召开的党的十九届四中全会，首次提出“制度治理效能”理念，突出强调“坚持和完善支撑中国特色社会主义制度的根本制度、基本制度、重要制度，着力固根基、扬优势、补短板、强弱项，构建系统完备、科学规范、运行有效的制度体系，加强系统治理、依法治理、综合治理、源头治理，把我国制度优势更好转化为国家治理效能，为实现‘两个一百年’奋斗目标、实现中华民族伟大复兴的中国梦提供有力保证”。党的二十届三中全会，就进一步全面深化改革、 推进中国式现代化作出战略部署，深刻阐述了进一步全面深化改革的重大意义、指导思想、总目标、重要原则等，强调要“坚持以制度建设为主线，加强顶层设计、总体谋划，破立并举、先立后破，筑牢根本制度，完善基本制度，创新重要制度”。新时代制度改革创新呈现出许多新内涵和新特点，其中最重要的就是，制度改革创新的“目标导向”更加明确，这就是全面建设社会主义现代化国家；制度改革创新的“内容主轴”更加清晰，这就是全面推进国家治理体系和治理能力现代化。正是在提升制度文明的改革创新中，形成和发展了全过程人民民主重大理念，扎实推进了全过程人民民主重大实践。新时代不断深化的制度改革创新，标志着我们党对人类政治文明制度化本质的认识和把握达到了一个新的水平。

III. Whole-Process People’s Democracy, Adhering to Governance as Its Mission and Promoting the Transformation of Democratic Value, Further Endows Human Political Civilization with a Governance Function

三、全过程人民民主，坚持以治理为使命、促进民主价值转化，进一步赋予人类政治文明治理性功能

Because the process of human political civilization is mainly closely linked to the evolution of state forms and the choice of state forms, the essence of political civilization is the construction of the state and its governance. The fundamental basis for Marx to call capitalist political civilization “modern civilization” is precisely that this is a “modern state system” “built on the basis of modern bourgeois society.” Capitalist political civilization has limitations that are difficult for itself to overcome and will inevitably be replaced by a higher-level socialist political civilization. In a fundamental sense, this is because the capitalist state is a state monopolized by a minority of capital oligarchs and their agents; this state system actually excludes the people from national governance. “The modern state, whatever its form, is essentially a capitalist machine, the state of the capitalists, the ideal total capitalist. The more productive forces it takes over, the more it becomes the actual total capitalist and the more citizens it exploits.” The founders of scientific socialism pointed out with foresight that “first of all, the proletarian revolution will establish a democratic state system, thereby directly or indirectly establishing the political rule of the proletariat,” taking state power back into the hands of the people and realizing socialist political civilization; “Do the people have the right to establish a new state system for themselves? The answer to this question should be absolutely affirmative, because if the state system no longer truly expresses the will of the people, it becomes something in name only.”

由于人类政治文明进程主要是同国家形态的演变和国家形式的选择紧密联系在一起的，因而政治文明的实质就是国家的建构及其治理。马克思之所以将资本主义政治文明称为“现代文明”，根本依据就在于这是“建立在现代资产阶级社会的基础上”的“现代国家制度”。资本主义政治文明存在着自身难以克服的局限性，必然要被更高层次的社会主义政治文明所代替，从根本意义上说，就是因为资本主义国家是被少数资本寡头及其代理人垄断的国家，这种国家制度实际上把人民排除在国家治理之外。“现代国家，不管它的形式如何，本质上都是资本主义的机器，资本家的国家，理想的总资本家。它越是把更多的生产力据为己有，就越是成为真正的总资本家，越是剥削更多的公民。”科学社会主义创始人高瞻远瞩地指出，“首先无产阶级革命将建立民主的国家制度，从而直接或间接地建立无产阶级的政治统治”，将国家权力收归于人民手中，实现社会主义政治文明；“人民是否有权来为自己建立新的国家制度呢？对这个问题的回答应该是绝对肯定的，因为国家制度如果不再真正表现人民的意志，那它就变成有名无实的东西了”。

Based on the experience and lessons of the Paris Commune, Marx and Engels profoundly revealed the essence of the state system in which the people are the masters of the country: “This is the reabsorption of the state power by society, transforming it from a force dominating and suppressing society into a vital force of society itself”; “It is essentially the government of the working class,” “the political form for the people to achieve social liberation,” “the product of the class struggle between the producing class and the appropriating class, the political form finally discovered that can achieve the economic liberation of labor.” The essence of such a new type of state system is, of course, also the essence of human political civilization. Marx and Engels particularly emphasized that a sacred mission of the proletariat and working people, who have taken state power and become the masters of the state and society, is to strengthen the democratic governance of state institutions to prevent the state and state organs from changing from public servants into masters of society. Engels succinctly summarized the experience of the Paris Commune in the construction of state power, condensing the “two reliable measures” adopted by the Paris Commune: first, implementing a system of popular election, entrusting all state positions “to persons elected by universal suffrage, and stipulating that the electors can recall the elected at any time”; second, eliminating privileges, “paying all public officials, regardless of rank, only the same wages as other workers.” These two major measures have profound contemporary value, pointing out the basic direction of strengthening national governance by relying on the power of people’s democracy. This is nothing less than an important experience and valuable asset of human political civilization.

马克思和恩格斯根据巴黎公社的经验教训，深刻揭示了人民当家作主国家制度的本质：“这是社会把国家政权重新收回，把它从统治社会、压制社会的力量变成社会本身的充满生气的力量”；“它实质上是工人阶级的政府”“是人民群众获得社会解放的政治形式”，“是生产者阶级同占有者阶级斗争的产物，是终于发现的可以使劳动在经济上获得解放的政治形式”。这样一种新型国家制度的本质，当然也是人类政治文明的本质。马克思和恩格斯特别强调，掌握了国家权力、成为国家和社会主人的无产阶级和劳动人民的一个神圣使命就是必须加强对国家机构的民主化治理，以防止国家和国家机关由社会公仆变为社会主人。恩格斯精辟总结了巴黎公社在国家政权建设上的经验，凝练了巴黎公社采取的“两个可靠的办法”，即一是实行人民选举制，把一切国家职位“交给由普选选出的人担任，而且规定选举者可以随时撤换被选举者”；二是消除特权，“对所有公职人员，不论职位高低，都只付给跟其他工人同样的工资”。这两条重大措施，具有深远的时代价值，指明了依靠人民民主的力量加强国家治理的基本方向，这不啻是人类政治文明的重要经验和宝贵财富。

Whether democracy and governance can be combined, and how to combine them, is a major difficulty in both Western democratic models and traditional democratic concepts. Democracy emphasizes procedures, governance pursues efficiency; the two seem difficult to combine, even contradictory in value. The major concept of whole-process people’s democracy developed in China and its in-depth practice have effectively achieved the organic combination of democracy and governance. This is to organically embed the political system of socialism with Chinese characteristics into the national governance mechanism and transform it into national governance efficacy, thereby opening up an effective path for advancing the modernization of national governance by relying on the power of people’s democracy.

民主和治理能否结合、如何结合，这在西方民主模式和传统民主理念中都是一个重大难题。民主讲究程序，治理追求效率，两者似乎难以结合，甚至价值相悖。我国发展全过程人民民主的重大理念及其深入实践，有效实现了民主与治理的有机结合，这就是把中国特色社会主义政治制度有机地嵌入国家治理机制、转化为国家治理效能，从而开辟了依靠人民民主力量推进国家治理现代化的有效路径。

Marx and Engels pointed out: “What is democracy? It must have a certain meaning, otherwise it cannot exist. Therefore the whole question lies in determining the true meaning of democracy.” The true meaning of democracy is the realization of democratic value. Whether a type of democracy has value and meaning ultimately depends on whether it is useful for optimizing national governance, whether it is useful for advancing social development, and whether it is useful for realizing the rights and interests of the people. This is also the fundamental criterion for judging whether a type of political civilization has value and meaning. Xi Jinping profoundly pointed out: “Democracy is not an ornament, not something to be used as a display, but rather something to be used to solve the problems the people need to solve.” [14]14 Xi “To evaluate whether a country’s political system is democratic and effective, the main things to look at are whether the national leadership can be replaced in an orderly manner according to law, whether all the people can manage state affairs and social affairs as well as economic and cultural undertakings according to law, whether the masses can smoothly express their interests and demands, whether all sectors of society can effectively participate in the country’s political life, whether national decision-making can be made scientific and democratic, whether talented people from all walks of life can enter the national leadership and management system through fair competition, whether the ruling party can lead state affairs in accordance with the constitution and laws, and whether the exercise of power can be effectively checked and supervised.” [15]15 The “first centenary goal” refers to the goal of building a moderately prosperous society in all respects by the centenary of the founding of the Chinese Communist Party in 2021. In short, for a democratic system to be useful and effective, it must faithfully represent the interests and will of all the people in advancing national and social governance, and continuously transform the advantages of the democratic system into the effectiveness of national governance. The fundamental reason why China’s whole-process people’s democracy increasingly demonstrates great vitality and influence, and increasingly shows distinctive features and great advantages in the comparison of various democratic systems and value concepts in today’s world, is that it takes safeguarding people’s sovereignty, respecting people’s creativity, and concentrating people’s wisdom as the internal logic for advancing the modernization of national governance, thereby fully manifesting the true meaning of democracy and fully realizing the core value of democracy. This is precisely the significance of modern political civilization contained in China’s whole-process people’s democracy.

马克思和恩格斯指出：“民主是什么呢？它必须具备一定的意义，否则它就不能存在。因此全部问题就在于确定民主的真正意义。”民主的真正意义即民主的价值实现。一种民主是否有价值、有意义，归根到底要看它是否对优化国家治理有用，是否对推进社会发展有用，是否对实现人民权益有用。这也是判断一种政治文明是否有价值有意义的根本标准。习近平深刻指出：“民主不是装饰品，不是用来做摆设的，而是要用来解决人民需要解决的问题的。”“评价一个国家政治制度是不是民主的、有效的，主要看国家领导层能否依法有序更替，全体人民能否依法管理国家事务和社会事务、管理经济和文化事业，人民群众能否畅通表达利益要求，社会各方面能否有效参与国家政治生活，国家决策能否实现科学化、民主化，各方面人才能否通过公平竞争进入国家领导和管理体系，执政党能否依照宪法法律规定实现对国家事务的领导，权力运用能否得到有效制约和监督。”总之，一种民主制度要有用、有效，必须忠实代表全体人民的利益和意愿推进国家和社会治理，不断把民主制度优势转化为国家治理效能。中国全过程人民民主之所以愈来愈彰显出巨大生命力和影响力，在当今世界各种民主制度和价值理念比较中愈益彰显出鲜明特色和巨大优势，根本原因就是把保障人民主权、尊重人民创造、集中人民智慧作为推进国家治理现代化的内在逻辑，从而使民主的真正意义得到充分彰显，民主的核心价值得到充分实现。这正是中国全过程人民民主所内含的现代政治文明意义。

An important path for organically combining democracy and governance and promoting the transformation of democratic value into the effectiveness of national governance is to enhance the comprehensiveness and full coverage of people’s democracy. Whole-process people’s democracy is comprehensive democracy, which not only has a complete institutional chain but also extensive participatory practice. Through sound political participation mechanisms and畅通 [16]16 The “second centenary goal” refers to the goal of building a modern socialist country that is prosperous, strong, democratic, culturally advanced, and harmonious by the centenary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China in 2049. mass participation channels, it continuously expands the breadth and depth of people’s participation in national and social governance, ensuring that the people enjoy genuine rights to information, participation, expression, and oversight. Whole-process people’s democracy is full-coverage democracy, insisting on the interconnection of democratic elections, democratic consultations, democratic decision-making, democratic management, and democratic oversight, covering democratic participation in all fields such as the economy, politics, culture, society, and ecological civilization construction, thereby effectively implementing the principle of the people being the masters of the country in all aspects of national and social governance, and better realizing the organic unity of direct democracy and indirect democracy, the organic unity of procedural democracy and substantive democracy, the organic unity of process democracy and outcome democracy, and the organic unity of people’s democracy and the will of the state. Practice has profoundly shown that to realize this true meaning and core value of whole-process people’s democracy, it is necessary to firmly grasp the true essence of people’s democracy in advancing the modernization of national and social governance, namely, that matters should be discussed properly, and the affairs of the many should be discussed by the many. Matters concerning the overall governance of the country and the interests of the people of all ethnic groups across the country should be widely discussed among all the people and in the whole society; matters concerning the governance of a part of the country and the interests of the people in that region should be widely discussed among the masses in that part and region; matters concerning the governance of specific state affairs and the interests of a portion of the people or specific groups of people should be widely discussed among that portion of the people; matters concerning the governance of grassroots society and the interests of grassroots people should be widely discussed among the masses in the corresponding grassroots scope. In short, “the process of extensive discussion among various parties within the people is a process of promoting democracy and pooling wisdom, a process of unifying thinking and building consensus, a process of making scientific and democratic decisions, and a process of realizing the people being the masters of the country.” [17]

把民主和治理有机结合起来，促进民主价值转化为国家治理效能，一个重要路径是增强人民民主的全方位和全覆盖。全过程人民民主是全方位民主，不仅有完整的制度链条，而且有广泛的参与实践，通过健全的政治参与机制和畅通的大众参与渠道，不断扩大人民参与国家和社会治理的广度和深度，保障人民享有真实的知情权、参与权、表达权和监督权。全过程人民民主是全覆盖民主，坚持民主选举、民主协商、民主决策、民主管理、民主监督相互贯通，把民主参与覆盖到经济、政治、文化、社会、生态文明建设等各个领域，从而把坚持人民当家作主有效落实到国家和社会治理一切层面，更好实现直接民主和间接民主的有机统一、过程民主和成果民主的有机统一、程序民主和实质民主的有机统一、人民民主和国家意志的有机统一。实践深刻表明，要实现全过程人民民主的这一真正意义和核心价值，就要在推进国家和社会治理现代化中牢牢把握住人民民主的真谛，即有事好商量、众人的事情由众人商量。涉及国家整体治理的事情，涉及全国各族人民利益的事情，在全体人民和全社会中广泛商量；涉及国家局部治理的事情，涉及某个地域人民群众利益的事情，在这个局部和地域的群众中广泛商量；涉及某些具体国家事务治理的事情，涉及一部分群众利益和特定群众利益的事情，在这部分群众中广泛商量；涉及基层社会治理的事情，涉及基层群众利益的事情，在相应基层范围群众中广泛商量。总之，“在人民内部各方面广泛商量的过程，就是发扬民主、集思广益的过程，就是统一思想、凝聚共识的过程，就是科学决策、民主决策的过程，就是实现人民当家作主的过程”。

Popular sentiment is the greatest politics, and the direction of popular sentiment is the deepest connotation of people’s democracy. Winning people’s hearts, gathering popular sentiment, forming the greatest common divisor, and gathering the mighty force for building a strong country and national rejuvenation are the core values of the unique view of democracy contained in Chinese-path modernization, which is undoubtedly also the true meaning and core value of human political civilization. Winning people’s hearts and gathering popular sentiment are built on the basis of equality and inclusiveness, which is precisely the unique character of China’s whole-process people’s democracy. “The concept of democracy contains the demand for social equality.” [18] Democracy means that everyone enjoys equal status and equal rights, and is equal before national governance, social affairs, and the law. The people’s demands for equal status, rights, and value inevitably require the development of inclusive democracy. The comprehensiveness and full coverage of China’s whole-process people’s democracy prominently reflect the great advantages of equality and inclusiveness. Under the common political value of the people being the masters of the country, fully respecting the people’s demands for equal value, most broadly accommodating opinions and suggestions from all sides, uniting all political groups and social forces, forming the broadest possible patriotic united front, promoting harmony in relations between political parties, ethnic groups, religions, strata, and compatriots at home and abroad, achieving great unity and great alliance on the basis of equal relations, and continuously consolidating and developing “a political situation in which there is both centralism and democracy, both discipline and freedom, both unity of will and personal ease of mind and lively and vigorous atmosphere.” [19] To realize and consolidate such a lively and vigorous political situation, it is necessary to correctly handle the relationship between uniformity and diversity, and fully release the inclusive function of people’s democracy. China’s whole-process people’s democracy, especially consultative democracy, covers all political parties, groups, ethnic groups, strata, sectors, and people from all walks of life, covers all fields of national governance and economic and social development, and has great political inclusiveness. Through extensive, multi-tiered, and institutionalized democratic consultations, conducting extensive and full consultations on major issues concerning national governance, the national economy and people’s livelihood, and hot, difficult, blocking, and painful issues involving the vital interests of the people, building full-coverage and inclusive platforms for discussion, discussing matters more when there are matters, often discussing matters when doing things, discussing the affairs of the many by the many, and repeatedly discussing major matters, it can undoubtedly form public policies and public measures acceptable and adoptable to all sides, form the greatest common divisor that conforms to the interests and will of the vast majority of the people, and jointly advance the modernization of national and social governance. Such a process of democratic consultation vividly demonstrates the political logic of the transformation of democratic value into governance effectiveness. This unique political value and successful practice of China’s whole-process people’s democracy provides Chinese experience and Chinese solutions for profoundly answering the unique challenge facing the process of human political civilization: how to rely on the power of people’s democracy to advance national governance.

民心是最大的政治，民心所向是人民民主最深邃的内涵。守住人心、凝聚民心，形成最大公约数，汇聚起强国建设和民族复兴的磅礴力量，是中国式现代化蕴含的独特民主观的最核心价值，这无疑也是人类政治文明的真正意义和核心价值。守住人心、凝聚民心，建立在平等和包容基础之上，这正是中国全过程人民民主的特有品格。“民主这个概念中包含着社会平等的要求。”民主意味着人人享有平等的地位和平等的权利，在国家治理、社会事务、法律地位面前人人平等。人民平等的地位、权利和价值诉求，必然要求发展包容性民主。中国全过程人民民主的全方位性和全覆盖性，突出体现了平等性和包容性的巨大优势。在人民当家作主这一共同政治价值下，充分尊重人民群众平等价值诉求，最广泛地包容各方面意见和建议，凝聚一切政治团体和社会力量，形成最广泛的爱国统一战线，促进政党关系、民族关系、宗教关系、阶层关系、海内外同胞关系的和谐，在平等关系基础上实现大团结大联合，不断巩固和发展“又有集中又有民主，又有纪律又有自由，又有统一意志、又有个人心情舒畅、生动活泼的政治局面”。实现和巩固这样一种生动活泼的政治局面，就要正确处理一致性和多样性的关系，充分释放人民民主的包容性功能。我国全过程人民民主尤其是协商民主，涵盖各党派、各团体、各民族、各阶层、各界别和各方面人士，覆盖国家治理和经济社会发展一切领域，具有极大的政治包容性。通过广泛多层制度化的民主协商，围绕治国理政、国计民生重大问题和涉及人民群众切身利益的热点难点堵点痛点问题进行广泛充分协商，构建全覆盖包容性的商量平台，有事多商量，做事常商量，众人的事情由众人商量，重大的事情反复商量，最大程度兼顾各方面利益，最大限度包容各方面诉求，最大深度融汇各方面智慧，无疑可以形成各方面均可接受和采纳的公共政策和公共措施，形成符合最大多数人利益和意愿的最大公约数，共同推进国家和社会治理现代化。这样一种民主协商的过程，生动彰显了民主价值向治理效能转化的政治逻辑。中国全过程人民民主这一特有的政治价值和成功实践，为深刻回答人类政治文明进程面临的如何依靠人民民主力量推进国家治理这一特有难题提供了中国经验和中国方案。

IV. Whole-Process People’s Democracy, Adhering to Taking the World as One’s Responsibility and Following the Common Values of All Humanity, Further Enhancing the Character of Integration of Human Political Civilizations

四、全过程人民民主，坚持以天下为己任、遵循全人类共同价值，进一步增强人类政治文明交融性品格

As the crystallization of human political wisdom and the fruit of common creation, political civilization has the essential characteristics of diversity and integration. Political civilizations of different countries and different nations develop together through integration and mutual learning, and continuously sublimate through mutual tolerance, thus constituting the colorful picture of human political civilization. This is the basic law and development trend of the political civilization process. However, for a long time, there have been various biases and confusions in how to understand and treat political civilization. Some Western scholars and politicians advocate the “clash of civilizations theory” and “civilizational superiority theory,” pursue “Western civilizational centrism” and civilizational hegemonism; some people within our own ranks advocate an either-or view of civilization and narrow nationalism that regards oneself as the only one. Such various concepts and behaviors are fundamentally contrary to the general trends of economic globalization and world multipolarization, and have caused varying degrees of adverse effects on the process of human political civilization, even playing a negative and obstructive role.

作为人类政治智慧的结晶和共同创造的成果，政治文明具有多样性和交融性的本质特征。不同国家、不同民族的政治文明在交融互鉴中共同发展、在相互包容中不断升华，从而构成人类政治文明绚丽多彩的图景，这是政治文明进程的基本规律、也是发展趋势。然而长期以来，在如何认识和对待政治文明问题上，却存在着种种偏颇与困惑。西方一些学者和政客宣扬“文明冲突论”“文明优越论”，奉行“西方文明中心主义”和文明霸权主义；我们自己队伍中一些人崇尚非此即彼的文明观和唯我独尊的狭隘民族主义。如此种种观念和行为，都与经济全球化、世界多极化大趋势根本相悖，都不同程度地造成对人类政治文明进程的不良影响甚至产生消极滞障作用。

In the New Era, Chinese Communists, with Comrade Xi Jinping as their chief representative, standing at the height of history and the times, have made insightful observations and grasped the inner logic and developmental trends of human civilization, including political civilization, and have made far-sighted plans for how to conform to the trends of the times, seize historical initiative, and build the modern civilization of the Chinese nation. As early as the beginning of 2014, General Secretary Xi Jinping, in a speech at the headquarters of UNESCO, made the incisive judgment that “exchanges and mutual learning among civilizations are an important driving force for the progress of human civilization and world peace and development.” “Civilizations are colorful; it is precisely because human civilizations are diverse that they have value for exchange and mutual learning”; “Civilizations are equal; it is precisely because human civilizations are equal that they have the prerequisite for exchange and mutual learning”; “Civilizations are inclusive; it is precisely because human civilizations are inclusive that they have the impetus for exchange and mutual learning.” This view of human civilization as colorful, equal, and inclusive is refreshing and enlightening, powerfully correcting the biases of the “clash of civilizations” and the “superiority of civilizations” theses. Since the New Era, Xi Jinping has systematically expounded on the diverse nature of human civilization and the trend of exchange and mutual learning at a series of important international conferences and occasions, forming a “grand view of civilization” with rich connotations, clear orientation, and far-reaching influence. He has put forward the Belt and Road Initiative and the concept of building a community with a shared future for mankind, and issued the Global Development Initiative, the Global Security Initiative, and the Global Civilization Initiative. In the report to the 20th National Congress of the CPC, General Secretary Xi Jinping further clearly emphasized: “At present, changes of the world, of the times, and of history are unfolding in ways like never before.” “We sincerely call upon all countries to promote the common values of all mankind—peace, development, fairness, justice, democracy, and freedom—to enhance mutual understanding and affinity among peoples, to respect the diversity of world civilizations, to transcend civilizational estrangement through exchanges, to transcend civilizational clashes through mutual learning, and to transcend civilizational superiority through coexistence, and to jointly address various global challenges.” Whole-process people’s democracy, as the concentrated embodiment of socialist political civilization with Chinese characteristics, is precisely at the level of manifesting the essential characteristics of human political civilization, following the common values of human political civilization, and conforming to the development trends of human political civilization, making a significant contribution to actively promoting global governance and building a human political civilization that conforms to the trends of the times and the interests of the people of all countries.

新时代以习近平同志为主要代表的中国共产党人，站在历史和时代的高度，对人类文明包括政治文明的内在逻辑和发展趋势作出高屋建瓴的洞察和把握，对如何顺应时代潮流、把握历史主动构建中华民族现代文明作出高瞻远瞩的擘画。早在2014年年初，习近平总书记就在联合国教科文组织总部演讲时作出“文明交流互鉴，是推动人类文明进步和世界和平发展的重要动力”的精辟论断。“文明是多彩的，人类文明因多样才有交流互鉴的价值”；“文明是平等的，人类文明因平等才有交流互鉴的前提”；“文明是包容的，人类文明因包容才有交流互鉴的动力”。多彩、平等、包容的人类文明观，令人耳目一新、豁然开朗，有力纠正了“文明冲突论”“文明优越论”的偏颇。新时代以来，习近平在一系列重要国际会议和场合对人类文明的多样性本质和交流互鉴趋势进行系统阐发，形成了内涵丰富、指向鲜明、影响深远的“大文明观”，提出了“一带一路”倡议和构建人类命运共同体理念，发出了全球发展倡议、全球安全倡议和全球文明倡议。在党的二十大报告中，习近平总书记进一步明确强调：“当前，世界之变、时代之变、历史之变正以前所未有的方式展开。”“我们真诚呼吁，世界各国弘扬和平、发展、公平、正义、民主、自由的全人类共同价值，促进各国人民相知相亲，尊重世界文明多样性，以文明交流超越文明隔阂、文明互鉴超越文明冲突、文明共存超越文明优越，共同应对各种全球性挑战。”作为中国特色社会主义政治文明集中体现的全过程人民民主，正是在彰显人类政治文明本质特征、遵循人类政治文明共同价值、顺应人类政治文明发展趋势等层面，为积极推动全球治理、建设符合时代潮流和各国人民利益的人类政治文明作出了重大贡献。

Whole-process people’s democracy is internally generated from the glorious course of the Communist Party of China’s unremitting struggle for people’s democracy, profoundly manifesting the people-centered foundation of human political civilization. The people are the fundamental source on which the Communist Party of China relies for its survival, development, and growth; the roots of the Communist Party of China are in the people, its blood is in the people, and its strength is in the people. People-centeredness is the fundamental attribute of Chinese Communists, and the people’s standpoint is the fundamental standpoint of Chinese Communists. It is precisely by firmly standing on the people’s standpoint that our Party has always held high the glorious banner of people’s democracy, leading and relying on the people to successively create the glorious course and great miracle of “winning people’s democracy” by winning the victory of the New Democratic Revolution, “constructing people’s democracy” by completing the socialist revolution and advancing socialist construction, “developing people’s democracy” by carrying out reform and opening up and socialist modernization, and “sublimating people’s democracy” by inaugurating the New Era of socialism with Chinese characteristics. People’s democracy has been organically integrated into our Party’s great practice of exploring the path of Chinese-path modernization, becoming an important political foundation and a distinct political background for building a strong country and national rejuvenation. Whole-process people’s democracy is precisely the great crystallization of our Party’s unremitting struggle for people’s democracy over the past 100 years and more. The historical logic and practical orientation of whole-process people’s democracy profoundly indicate that although types and forms of human political civilization differ, the essence is that the people are the subject of political civilization, and relying on the people’s joint struggle is the lifeblood and vitality of political civilization. It is precisely in this essential sense that China’s whole-process people’s democracy manifests the historic role and universal value of advancing human political civilization.

全过程人民民主，内在生成于中国共产党为人民民主不懈奋斗的光辉历程，深刻彰显人类政治文明的人民性底蕴。人民是中国共产党赖以生存和发展壮大的根本源泉，中国共产党根基在人民、血脉在人民、力量在人民。人民性是中国共产党人的根本属性，人民的立场是中国共产党人的根本立场。正是坚定站在人民的立场上，我们党才始终高举人民民主的光辉旗帜，带领和依靠人民相继创造了夺取新民主主义革命胜利“争得人民民主”、完成社会主义革命和推进社会主义建设“建构人民民主”、进行改革开放和社会主义现代化建设“发展人民民主”、开创中国特色社会主义新时代“升华人民民主”的辉煌历程和伟大奇迹，人民民主有机地融入我们党探索中国式现代化道路的伟大实践，成为强国建设和民族复兴的重要政治基础和鲜明政治底色。全过程人民民主，正是100多年来我们党为人民民主不懈奋斗的伟大结晶。全过程人民民主的历史逻辑和实践指向深刻表明，人类政治文明类型不同、形式不同，这就是人民是政治文明的主体，依靠人民共同奋斗是政治文明的生命所在、活力所在。正是从这个本质意义上说，中国全过程人民民主彰显了推进人类政治文明的历史性作用和普遍性价值。

Whole-process people’s democracy is deeply rooted in the profound and extensive excellent traditional Chinese culture and the long-standing Chinese civilization, profoundly embodying the inclusive nature of human political civilization. The major concept of whole-process people’s democracy and its in-depth practice are the brilliant crystallization of our Party’s adherence to integrating Marxist democratic theory with China’s specific realities and with the excellent traditional

全过程人民民主，深深植根于博大精深的中华优秀传统文化和历史悠久的中华文明，深刻蕴涵人类政治文明的包容性本色。全过程人民民主重大理念及其深入实践，是我们党坚持把马克思主义民主理论同中国具体实际相结合、同中华优秀传统文化相结合的光辉结晶，蕴涵着中华优秀传统文化的重要元素和中华文明的传统美德，其中，中华文明所具有的突出的包容性已经内在转化为全过程人民民主的特有品格。中华优秀传统文化有很多重要元素，共同塑造出中华文明的突出特性。其中，天下为公、天下大同的社会理想，厚德载物、明德弘道的精神追求，执两用中、守中致和的思维方法，使中华文明具有突出的包容性。“中华文明从来不用单一文化代替多元文化，而是由多元文化汇聚成共同文化，化解冲突、凝聚共识。”中华文明的包容性从根本上决定了中华民族交往交流交融的历史取向，决定了中华文化对世界文明兼收并蓄的开放胸怀。中华文明的博大胸怀和包容性品格，深深熔铸于发展全过程人民民主的理念与实践。确保人民当家作主权利的全链条性，社会各界和人民大众广泛参与的全方位性，贯通民主选举、民主协商、民主决策、民主管理、民主监督等各个领域和全部过程的全覆盖性，深刻表明全过程人民民主不是少数人的民主而是绝大多数人的民主，不是形式上的民主而是实质上的民主，不是装潢门面的民主而是最真实、最广泛、最管用的民主。正是从这一鲜明品格上说，我国全过程人民民主对人类政治文明进程必将产生深远影响。

Whole-process people’s democracy, formed and perfected on the basis of a scientific judgment of the major trends in world democracy and a comprehensive adherence to the common values of all humanity, profoundly reveals the developmental trajectory of human political civilization. The major concept of the Chinese Communist Party concerning the development of whole-process people’s democracy was put forward at a critical juncture when reform and opening up were deepening, the “first centenary goal” [15]15 The “first centenary goal” refers to the goal of building a moderately prosperous society in all respects by the centenary of the founding of the Chinese Communist Party in 2021. of building a moderately prosperous society in all respects was about to be achieved, and the new journey of comprehensively building a modern socialist country for the “second centenary goal” [16]16 The “second centenary goal” refers to the goal of building a modern socialist country that is prosperous, strong, democratic, culturally advanced, and harmonious by the centenary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China in 2049. was being smoothly launched. It was advanced from the commanding height of coordinating the changes unseen in a century and the strategic overall situation of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, providing in-depth answers to the questions of the times, the world, and practice. Hence it possesses profound contemporaneity and foresight, representing an active adherence to and dynamic application of the common values of human civilization. The concept of whole-process people’s democracy and its deep practice not only profoundly embody the people’s pursuit of common values such as peace, development, fairness, and justice, but also deeply reflect the people’s aspiration for political civilization, including democracy, freedom, equality, and human rights. Thus it inherently becomes an important content and essential requirement of Chinese-path modernization. In his keynote address at the High-level Dialogue between the Chinese Communist Party and World Political Parties, General Secretary Xi Jinping further pointed out: “Modernization should not be measured by indicators and data on paper alone, but more importantly by the happiness and well-being of the people. Political parties should anchor themselves to the people’s aspiration for a better life, respond to the people’s desire for progress and civilization, and strive to achieve material abundance, political integrity, cultural-ethical enrichment, social stability, and a pleasant ecological environment. They should ensure that modernization better responds to the people’s various demands and multi-level needs, enhances the well-being of the current generation, safeguards the rights and interests of future generations, and promotes the sustainable development of human society.” “Today, the diverse paths to modernization pursued by different countries and regions are rooted in their rich, diverse, and long-standing civilizational heritages. All civilizations created by human society shine with brilliance, endowing the modernization of various countries with profound foundations and distinctive characteristics. They transcend time and space and go beyond national borders, jointly making important contributions to the process of human modernization. As a new form of human civilization, Chinese-path modernization, by drawing on the strengths of other civilizations, will surely greatly enrich the garden of world civilizations.” It is precisely in this essential sense of the civilizational character of world modernization that China’s whole-process people’s democracy creatively opens up a new realm of human political civilization.

全过程人民民主，形成并完善于对世界民主大趋势的科学判断和对全人类共同价值的全面遵循，深刻展示人类政治文明的发展趋势。中国共产党关于发展全过程人民民主的重大理念，是在改革开放深入发展、全面建成小康社会“第一个百年”奋斗目标即将实现、顺利开启全面建设社会主义现代化国家“第二个百年”奋斗目标新征程的关键时刻提出来的，是站在统筹世界百年未有之大变局和中华民族伟大复兴战略全局的制高点上深入回答时代之问、世界之问、实践之问提出来的，因而具有深刻的时代性和前瞻性，是对人类文明共同价值的主动性坚守和能动性运用。全过程人民民主理念及其深入实践，既深刻体现了人民对和平、发展、公平、正义等共同价值的追求，又深刻反映了人民对民主、自由、平等、人权等政治文明的渴望，由此内在地成为中国式现代化的重要内容和本质要求。在中国共产党与世界政党高层对话会上的主旨讲话中，习近平总书记进一步指出：“现代化不仅要看纸面上的指标数据，更要看人民的幸福安康。政党要锚定人民对美好生活的向往，顺应人民对文明进步的渴望，努力实现物质富裕、政治清明、精神富足、社会安定、生态宜人，让现代化更好回应人民各方面诉求和多层次需要，既增进当代人福祉，又保障子孙后代权益，促进人类社会可持续发展。”“当今世界不同国家、不同地区各具特色的现代化道路，植根于丰富多样、源远流长的文明传承。人类社会创造的各种文明，都闪烁着璀璨光芒，为各国现代化积蓄了厚重底蕴、赋予了鲜明特质，并跨越时空、超越国界，共同为人类社会现代化进程作出了重要贡献。中国式现代化作为人类文明新形态，与全球其他文明相互借鉴，必将极大丰富世界文明百花园。”正是在世界现代化的文明特质这个本质意义上，中国全过程人民民主创造性地开辟了人类政治文明新境界。

(Author: Bao Xinjian, Deputy Director of the Academic Committee of the Chinese Association of Political Science, Distinguished Professor of the School of Marxism at Shandong University, Member of the Academic Committee and Special Researcher of the Shandong Research Center for Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era)

（作者：包心鉴，中国政治学会学术委员会副主任，山东大学马克思主义学院特聘教授，山东省习近平新时代中国特色社会主义思想研究中心学术委员会委员、特邀研究员）

Online Editor: Jin Qiu

网络编辑：金秋