Leadership Attributes Salient to Chinese Local Voters: Correlates of Voting Intentions Among Chinese Constituents

Chinese voters are already allowed to elect their leaders directly at the village level, although such free elections at higher levels (township, county, city, province, and nationwide) are still technically illegal. Based on a national survey conducted by a leading research firm in China, this study examines how people’s demographic characteristics (age, income, and education) and their attitudes (beliefs and evaluations) toward their local administrators (city mayors or county governors) could help predict their voting intentions in the event a free and direct election would take place in the future. An understanding of Chinese voters’ decision-making processes is critical for predicting the effects of the current electoral system on China’s sociopolitical development. The lessons learned during this predemocratic stage may be crucial for a transition of China’s political system in the future.