What is centralization of political power index in China?

Centralization of political power index in China was 0.931 in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.

What is the highest centralization of political power index recorded in China?

The highest recorded value was 0.962 in 1789.

What is the lowest centralization of political power index recorded in China?

The lowest recorded value was 0.662 in 1948.

How does China rank for centralization of political power index?

China ranks 15th out of 176 countries with data for 2025.

Is centralization of political power index rising or falling in China?

Over the last ten years it is up 8.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.

Where does this China data come from?

The figures come from V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Centralization of Political Power Index. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Centralization of Political Power Index in China

Name: Centralization of Political Power Index in China
Creator: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data
License: CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)

China: Centralization of Political Power Index was 0.931 in 2025. ▼ Falling

Latest (2025)

0.931

Change on year

unchanged

World rank

15th

of 176 countries

All-time high

0.962

in 1789

All-time low

0.662

in 1948

Years of data

237

1789–2025

Centralization of Political Power Index in China, 1789–2025

Source: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.

Analysis

In 2025, centralization of political power index in China stood at 0.931.

The figure is up 8.3% over ten years.

Over the whole period, centralization of political power index in China peaked at 0.962 in 1789 and was at its lowest, 0.662, in 1948.

China ranks 15th of 176 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 237 years of available data.

Centralization of Political Power Index in China, year by year

Annual values for Centralization of Political Power Index in China, 1789 to 2025.
Year	Value	Change
1789	0.962	—
1790	0.962	+0.0%
1791	0.962	+0.0%
1792	0.962	+0.0%
1793	0.962	+0.0%
1794	0.962	+0.0%
1795	0.962	+0.0%
1796	0.962	+0.0%
1797	0.962	+0.0%
1798	0.962	+0.0%
1799	0.962	+0.0%
1800	0.962	+0.0%
1801	0.962	+0.0%
1802	0.962	+0.0%
1803	0.962	+0.0%
1804	0.962	+0.0%
1805	0.962	+0.0%
1806	0.962	+0.0%
1807	0.962	+0.0%
1808	0.962	+0.0%
1809	0.962	+0.0%
1810	0.962	+0.0%
1811	0.962	+0.0%
1812	0.962	+0.0%
1813	0.962	+0.0%
1814	0.962	+0.0%
1815	0.962	+0.0%
1816	0.962	+0.0%
1817	0.962	+0.0%
1818	0.962	+0.0%
1819	0.962	+0.0%
1820	0.962	+0.0%
1821	0.962	+0.0%
1822	0.962	+0.0%
1823	0.962	+0.0%
1824	0.962	+0.0%
1825	0.962	+0.0%
1826	0.962	+0.0%
1827	0.962	+0.0%
1828	0.962	+0.0%
1829	0.962	+0.0%
1830	0.962	+0.0%
1831	0.962	+0.0%
1832	0.962	+0.0%
1833	0.962	+0.0%
1834	0.962	+0.0%
1835	0.962	+0.0%
1836	0.962	+0.0%
1837	0.962	+0.0%
1838	0.962	+0.0%
1839	0.962	+0.0%
1840	0.962	+0.0%
1841	0.962	+0.0%
1842	0.962	+0.0%
1843	0.962	+0.0%
1844	0.962	+0.0%
1845	0.962	+0.0%
1846	0.962	+0.0%
1847	0.962	+0.0%
1848	0.962	+0.0%
1849	0.962	+0.0%
1850	0.962	+0.0%
1851	0.962	+0.0%
1852	0.962	+0.0%
1853	0.962	+0.0%
1854	0.962	+0.0%
1855	0.962	+0.0%
1856	0.962	+0.0%
1857	0.962	+0.0%
1858	0.962	+0.0%
1859	0.962	+0.0%
1860	0.962	+0.0%
1861	0.962	+0.0%
1862	0.962	+0.0%
1863	0.962	+0.0%
1864	0.962	+0.0%
1865	0.962	+0.0%
1866	0.962	+0.0%
1867	0.962	+0.0%
1868	0.962	+0.0%
1869	0.962	+0.0%
1870	0.962	+0.0%
1871	0.962	+0.0%
1872	0.962	+0.0%
1873	0.962	+0.0%
1874	0.962	+0.0%
1875	0.962	+0.0%
1876	0.962	+0.0%
1877	0.962	+0.0%
1878	0.962	+0.0%
1879	0.962	+0.0%
1880	0.962	+0.0%
1881	0.962	+0.0%
1882	0.962	+0.0%
1883	0.962	+0.0%
1884	0.962	+0.0%
1885	0.962	+0.0%
1886	0.962	+0.0%
1887	0.962	+0.0%
1888	0.962	+0.0%
1889	0.962	+0.0%
1890	0.962	+0.0%
1891	0.962	+0.0%
1892	0.962	+0.0%
1893	0.962	+0.0%
1894	0.962	+0.0%
1895	0.962	+0.0%
1896	0.962	+0.0%
1897	0.962	+0.0%
1898	0.962	+0.0%
1899	0.962	+0.0%
1900	0.915	-4.9%
1901	0.915	+0.0%
1902	0.915	+0.0%
1903	0.915	+0.0%
1904	0.915	+0.0%
1905	0.915	+0.0%
1906	0.915	+0.0%
1907	0.908	-0.8%
1908	0.908	+0.0%
1909	0.908	+0.0%
1910	0.908	+0.0%
1911	0.887	-2.3%
1912	0.801	-9.7%
1913	0.745	-7.0%
1914	0.792	+6.3%
1915	0.792	+0.0%
1916	0.804	+1.5%
1917	0.732	-9.0%
1918	0.76	+3.8%
1919	0.676	-11.1%
1920	0.668	-1.2%
1921	0.788	+18.0%
1922	0.815	+3.4%
1923	0.739	-9.3%
1924	0.698	-5.5%
1925	0.698	+0.0%
1926	0.698	+0.0%
1927	0.792	+13.5%
1928	0.766	-3.3%
1929	0.766	+0.0%
1930	0.766	+0.0%
1931	0.766	+0.0%
1932	0.766	+0.0%
1933	0.766	+0.0%
1934	0.766	+0.0%
1935	0.766	+0.0%
1936	0.766	+0.0%
1937	0.766	+0.0%
1938	0.76	-0.8%
1939	0.76	+0.0%
1940	0.76	+0.0%
1941	0.76	+0.0%
1942	0.76	+0.0%
1943	0.76	+0.0%
1944	0.76	+0.0%
1945	0.76	+0.0%
1946	0.76	+0.0%
1947	0.76	+0.0%
1948	0.662	-12.9%
1949	0.728	+10.0%
1950	0.829	+13.9%
1951	0.829	+0.0%
1952	0.829	+0.0%
1953	0.831	+0.2%
1954	0.773	-7.0%
1955	0.773	+0.0%
1956	0.773	+0.0%
1957	0.773	+0.0%
1958	0.773	+0.0%
1959	0.773	+0.0%
1960	0.773	+0.0%
1961	0.773	+0.0%
1962	0.773	+0.0%
1963	0.773	+0.0%
1964	0.773	+0.0%
1965	0.773	+0.0%
1966	0.777	+0.5%
1967	0.786	+1.2%
1968	0.786	+0.0%
1969	0.786	+0.0%
1970	0.786	+0.0%
1971	0.786	+0.0%
1972	0.786	+0.0%
1973	0.786	+0.0%
1974	0.786	+0.0%
1975	0.786	+0.0%
1976	0.786	+0.0%
1977	0.759	-3.4%
1978	0.757	-0.3%
1979	0.728	-3.8%
1980	0.713	-2.1%
1981	0.713	+0.0%
1982	0.713	+0.0%
1983	0.721	+1.1%
1984	0.713	-1.1%
1985	0.713	+0.0%
1986	0.717	+0.6%
1987	0.717	+0.0%
1988	0.717	+0.0%
1989	0.717	+0.0%
1990	0.717	+0.0%
1991	0.717	+0.0%
1992	0.717	+0.0%
1993	0.717	+0.0%
1994	0.717	+0.0%
1995	0.709	-1.1%
1996	0.709	+0.0%
1997	0.709	+0.0%
1998	0.714	+0.7%
1999	0.714	+0.0%
2000	0.707	-1.0%
2001	0.707	+0.0%
2002	0.701	-0.8%
2003	0.701	+0.0%
2004	0.701	+0.0%
2005	0.845	+20.5%
2006	0.846	+0.1%
2007	0.846	+0.0%
2008	0.846	+0.0%
2009	0.847	+0.1%
2010	0.847	+0.0%
2011	0.847	+0.0%
2012	0.852	+0.6%
2013	0.855	+0.4%
2014	0.851	-0.5%
2015	0.86	+1.1%
2016	0.86	+0.0%
2017	0.87	+1.2%
2018	0.869	-0.1%
2019	0.877	+0.9%
2020	0.913	+4.1%
2021	0.916	+0.3%
2022	0.904	-1.3%
2023	0.911	+0.8%
2024	0.931	+2.2%
2025	0.931	+0.0%

China compared with similar countries

China's 0.931 is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 0.3495, 2.7× the median. (48 countries reporting)
China's 0.931 is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 0.267, 3.5× the median. (22 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

Decade	Average	Lowest	Highest	Years
1780s	0.962	0.962	0.962	1
1790s	0.962	0.962	0.962	10
1800s	0.962	0.962	0.962	10
1810s	0.962	0.962	0.962	10
1820s	0.962	0.962	0.962	10
1830s	0.962	0.962	0.962	10
1840s	0.962	0.962	0.962	10
1850s	0.962	0.962	0.962	10
1860s	0.962	0.962	0.962	10
1870s	0.962	0.962	0.962	10
1880s	0.962	0.962	0.962	10
1890s	0.962	0.962	0.962	10
1900s	0.9129	0.908	0.915	10
1910s	0.7897	0.676	0.908	10
1920s	0.7428	0.668	0.815	10
1930s	0.7648	0.76	0.766	10
1940s	0.747	0.662	0.76	10
1950s	0.7956	0.773	0.831	10
1960s	0.7773	0.773	0.786	10
1970s	0.7746	0.728	0.786	10
1980s	0.7154	0.713	0.721	10
1990s	0.714	0.709	0.717	10
2000s	0.7747	0.701	0.847	10
2010s	0.8588	0.847	0.877	10
2020s	0.9177	0.904	0.931	6

Countries ranked near China

12 Turkmenistan 0.947 compare
13 Russia 0.945 compare
14 Burundi 0.936 compare
16 Cambodia 0.93 compare
17 Afghanistan 0.927 compare
18 Syria 0.914 compare

See the full ranking of 176 places →

More reference data data for China

Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 49.4 (2050)
Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 75.5 (2050)
Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 303.29 (2050)
Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 18.8 (2050)
Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 303.29 (2050)
Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 165.62 (2050)
Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 206.2 (2050)
Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 350.74 (2050)
Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 1,480 (2050)
Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 102.37 (2050)

All data for China →

Frequently asked questions

What is centralization of political power index in China?: Centralization of political power index in China was 0.931 in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest centralization of political power index recorded in China?: The highest recorded value was 0.962 in 1789.
What is the lowest centralization of political power index recorded in China?: The lowest recorded value was 0.662 in 1948.
How does China rank for centralization of political power index?: China ranks 15th out of 176 countries with data for 2025.
Is centralization of political power index rising or falling in China?: Over the last ten years it is up 8.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this China data come from?: The figures come from V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Centralization of Political Power Index. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Centralization of Political Power Index in China. Statizoid, drawing on V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Retrieved 22 September 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/political-centralization-index/china/

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About this data

Indicator: Centralization of Political Power Index
Source: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence: CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage: 176 places, 29,802 data points, 1789–2025
Last refreshed: 18 September 2026

Central estimate of the extent to which the executive is unconstrained by the legislature, judiciary, electoral management body, and other oversight.