Authoritarian State and Transition to Democracy in China

This article seeks to examine the transition to democracy in China after the successful economic reforms of the 1980s in China. Many theorists of modernization in favor of economic preconditions in transition to democracy believed that economic development can be a precondition for democratization, but in China, despite economic and social success, the transition to democracy has not taken place according to their model. What factors have led to the non-realization of the theory of modernization in the transition to democracy with economic preconditions should be sought in the position of the state and society. The research method of this article is a case study examining the position and role of traditional and Leninist institutions in the transition to democracy in China with regard to the provision of economic and social preconditions for the transition to democracy in China. The research findings show that despite some advances in democratization, such as local elections by the people after the 1980s reforms, the traditional institutional heritage of ancient China (Confucian culture) based on hierarchical order, meritocracy and harmonious society, post-Maoist Leninist institutionalization based on the monopoly of power in the Communist Party and the need for economic development , Public welfare and political stability as the people's priority has weakened society in relation to the authoritarian state in China and the possibility of a transition to democracy in China from below despite changing economic and social structures.