Consultative democracy is an important democratic form that the Communist Party of China has created and developed over a long period of revolutionary, construction, and reform practice, by uniting and leading the people. Since the advent of the new era, a series of internal party regulations—including the "Regulations on Political Consultation Work of the Communist Party of China"—have been issued. Moreover, a host of institutional documents have been released, such as the "Opinions on Strengthening the Development of Socialist Consultative Democracy," the "Implementation Opinions on Strengthening the Development of Consultative Democracy in the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference," and the "Implementation Opinions on Strengthening Party Consultation." As a result, the consultative democratic system has continued to improve, and the institutional development of consultative democracy has steadily advanced. The content of consultations has become richer, the forms of consultation more diverse, and the channels for consultation further expanded... Consultative democracy has been deeply embedded in every stage of China’s socialist democratic political process, playing an important role in strengthening the Party’s ties with the people, promoting scientific and democratic decision-making, and broadly building social consensus. Practice has fully demonstrated that consultative democracy is an essential institutional arrangement through which the Communist Party of China effectively governs the country and ensures that the people are truly masters of their own affairs. It complements and enhances electoral democracy, exhibiting vigorous vitality and significant advantages.

Developing whole-process people’s democracy is an essential requirement for Chinese-style modernization. In the new era and on the new journey ahead, there is an even greater need to improve the institutional framework of whole-process people’s democracy, fully leverage the unique advantages and important role of consultative democracy, and better unite hearts, build consensus, pool wisdom, and muster strength to advance Chinese-style modernization. General Secretary Xi Jinping has put forward clear requirements for continuously promoting the broad, multi-level, and institutionalized development of consultative democracy: “Always uphold the correct political direction,” “Coordinate and improve the consultative democratic system,” “Focus on perfecting the mechanisms of consultative democracy,” “Continuously expand the modes and platforms for consultation,” and “Actively foster a favorable atmosphere and conditions.” These requirements chart the course and provide crucial guidance for comprehensively developing consultative democracy in the new era.

The Party’s leadership is the fundamental guarantee for developing consultative democracy. It should be recognized that consultative democracy not only upholds the leadership of the Communist Party of China but also harnesses the positive roles of all sectors; it not only affirms the people’s central role but also implements the leadership system and organizational principles of democratic centralism; it not only adheres to the principle of people’s democracy but also embodies the requirement of unity and harmony, thereby highlighting the essence and distinctive features of whole-process people’s democracy as the broadest, most authentic, and most effective form of democracy. To fully develop consultative democracy, we must uphold the Party’s overall leadership, unswervingly follow the path of political development with Chinese characteristics, and comprehensively implement the requirements for developing whole-process people’s democracy. We must respect the masses’ pioneering spirit and rely closely on the people to advance this cause. We must uphold the unity of democratic decision-making based on consensus and democracy under centralized guidance, ensuring that consultations are conducted in accordance with the law and proceed in an orderly manner. On the road ahead, only by consistently upholding and strengthening the Party’s overall leadership and adhering to the correct political direction can we enable consultative democracy to demonstrate even greater advantages and achieve greater effectiveness.

General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized: “To fully develop consultative democracy, we need the concerted efforts, active exploration, and enriched practice of the entire Party and the whole nation.” We must deeply recognize that China’s consultative democracy—encompassing consultations among political parties, the National People’s Congress, the government, the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), people’s organizations, grassroots-level consultations, and social organizations—is an organic whole. We must coordinate and improve the consultative democratic system by both leveraging the unique characteristics and practical realities of different consultation channels to bring out their respective strengths and enhancing the synergy among these various channels so as to ensure alignment of objectives and the creation of combined forces. Institutionalization, standardization, and proceduralization are inevitable requirements for the development of consultative democracy. We must focus on perfecting the mechanisms of consultative democracy, insisting on conducting consultations before and during decision-making, and improving the mechanisms for adopting, implementing, and providing feedback on consultation outcomes. Continuously expanding the methods and platforms for consultation is a crucial foundation for enhancing the quality of consultative democracy. We should, in light of actual conditions, establish platforms for dialogue, exchanges, and candid communication, broaden channels for reflecting public sentiment and民意, and make the process of absorbing public opinion and pooling collective wisdom more institutionalized and routine. Consultative democracy must be genuine and comprehensive, involving all levels—from top to bottom across the country. We must actively foster a favorable atmosphere and conditions, vigorously cultivate a culture of consultative democracy, and create a healthy consultative environment characterized by free and open expression of views, while maintaining rationality, moderation, and compliance with laws and regulations.

Consultative democracy is an important means of realizing the Party’s leadership. When matters arise, it is essential to consult with one another; issues that concern the entire people should be deliberated upon by the people themselves. Identifying the greatest common divisor of the aspirations and demands of all sectors of society is the very essence of people’s democracy. In this new era and on this new journey, we must uphold the organic integration of Party leadership, the united front, and consultative democracy, and promote the comprehensive development of consultative democracy. We must adhere to the principle of consulting more often when there are matters to discuss, consulting more frequently when problems arise, and consulting extensively during the implementation of tasks. We should give full play to the role of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference as a specialized institution for consultation, strengthening unity, pooling wisdom, and rallying strength through consultation. Only then can we surely make new and even greater contributions to fully advancing the cause of building a strong country and achieving national rejuvenation through Chinese-style modernization.