The Making of the 18th Party Central Committee: Progress and Problems of Institutionalisation

Has Chinese elite politics attained a level of institutionalisation that long-term stability can be expected? This article explains the six-phased cadre performance evaluation system widely adopted at local power succession process and analyses the ways in which this system was selectively used in the making of the 18th Party Central Committee. Despite the various loopholes, the system does impose some constraints on arbitrary power; its wide adoption at the lower levels and the flatter power distribution enhance its legitimacy and promotes its institutionalisation.