“First Democracy, Then Centralism”: The New Shape of Village Elections Under the “One-Shoulder Pole” Policy

Since the full implementation of the 'one-shoulder pole' policy in 2019, village secretaries are now expected to concurrently serve as village heads. Simultaneously, the question arises as to how village secretaries can be guaranteed to be elected as village heads. Drawing on an in-depth case study of Y County, this paper shows that the local government has adopted an approach I call 'first democracy, then centralism' to ensure that village elections involve democratic elements, such as open nomination and candidate competition, yet also produce a designated winner who is, in the government's view, most qualified to govern the village. Such an approach has generated two consequences on village elections: First, the significance of village Party elections has greatly increased. Since the result of village committee elections is already certain, Party elections become the key phase that determines who will hold village office and in which candidates still have an opportunity to compete against one another. Second, it is now imperative for candidates to earn support and approval from the local government in order to become the village leaders in the new era.