The number of members of the ruling party in China, the Communist Party of China, has reportedly surpassed 100 million, reaching an all-time high. The increase in demand among university students and young professionals is interpreted as the party membership being seen as an advantageous tool for social advancement, such as employment, promotions, and scholarship selections.
On the 9th (local time), The Washington Post reported that the number of members of the Communist Party of China exceeded 100 million at the end of last year, accounting for about 7% of the total population. In the past, party membership was mainly composed of farmers and laborers, but recently, there has been a surge in demand from university students and young people in urban areas.
According to a press release from the Organization Department of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China published last June, the number of party members was more than 100.27 million as of last year, an increase of 1.09 million from the previous year. Additionally, 84% of new members were under the age of 35, and more than half were highly educated individuals holding a university degree. The Central Committee stated that "the number of party members is on a steady rise, and the organization is being positively improved."
In fact, content sharing methods for joining the Communist Party have gained significant popularity online. On China's largest social media platform, Weibo, and the video app Xiaohongshu, content sharing strategies, success stories, and experiences within the party organization are being increasingly posted, and some well-known influencers claim in detailed videos about the preparation process that "being a party member determines the course of one's life."
The main factor driving this surge in party membership is identified as social benefits rather than political beliefs. There is a widespread perception among young people that "being a party member is the best networking for employment," and in reality, there are instances where party members receive preferences during hiring or graduate school admissions. A study released by the Institute of Social Science of Peking University found that the average annual income of party members is 18% higher than that of non-party members. Testimonies also indicate that recommendations from party organizations significantly influence academic paths like scholarships and graduate school references.
The trend of favoring party members has been further strengthened since the administration of President Xi Jinping. Since taking office in 2012, Xi has launched a major anti-corruption campaign and emphasized the establishment of party ideology. In some regions of China, party membership is required as a condition for taking civil service exams, and it is known that professions such as teachers and lawyers implicitly grant additional points to party members. The Communist Party has introduced the "Excellent Young Rural Dispatch Program," which assigns young members from top universities to underdeveloped rural regions as civil servants and promotes them rapidly after a certain evaluation period.
The same applies to private corporations, not just the public sector. Major private corporations in China operate internal party organizations under government recommendations, including Alibaba, Tencent, Huawei, and JD.com, which have established party branches within. Jack Ma, the leading figure in China's tech sector, is also a Communist Party member and is said to actively reflect party policies in the management of his company.
However, the Trump administration in the United States has regarded this expansion of Communist Party organizations as a "national security threat" and is responding accordingly. Recently, the U.S. Department of State introduced visa issuance restrictions on individuals directly or indirectly related to the Communist Party of China, especially enhancing pre-screening based on party membership for international students, researchers, and technology professionals.
However, experts argue that the Communist Party of China should be viewed not simply as a political organization but as a type of social network that spans across society. Kerry Brown, a professor at King's College London, analyzed that "joining the party in China is a survival strategy rather than civic engagement," noting that "party members consider each other as valuable networking and social assets."