Chinese leaders encourage Communist party to adopt more democratic process

President Hu Jintao is pushing the Chinese Communist Party, the politically dominant party in the country, to adopt a more democratic process for its selection of new leaders. President Hu and his heir have reportedly proposed that the party’s 18th Congress should hold elections for the top tiers of its leadership, where for the first time there would be more candidates than available seats. Should the Communist Party adhere to these requests, it would entail an unprecedented level of reform. Both the president and the Communist Party are attempting to salvage their dwindling legitimacy in the face of inequality, corruption and environmental degradation. President Hu has been able to gain a notable degree of popularity with the public, which may be a factor in his decision to prompt democratic reform.