Will Wealth Lead to Democracy in China?

The idea that the Communist Party will collapse and democracy will eventually triumph in China is a grave misreading of the situation. The party stands as a harmonizing and unifying force in Chinese society – a far more important consideration for the middle class given the painful legacy of China’s historical fragmentation in the nineteenth and early twentieth century. Indeed, it stands to reason that if the CCP succeeds in elevating China into the echelons of the high income bracket, then conversely it will act as a powerful legitimating device for the regime.