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The Overrepresented Winner? Ethnic Minority Legislators in China’s National People’s Congress

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  26 November 2025

Wenhui Yang Open the ORCID record for Wenhui Yang [Opens in a new window]  and
Xinyang Gao Open the ORCID record for Xinyang Gao [Opens in a new window]
Wenhui Yang
Affiliation:
School of Government, Institute of National Governance Studies, Peking University, Beijing, China
Xinyang Gao*
Affiliation:
School of Government, Peking University, Beijing, China
*
Corresponding author: Xinyang Gao; Email: xinyang0614@pku.edu.cn
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Abstract

Does increasing descriptive representation enhance substantive representation? While ethnic minorities are generally underrepresented in legislatures worldwide, they are overrepresented in China’s National People’s Congress. We show that overrepresentation of ethnic legislators does not result in greater substantive representation. Compared to their Han counterparts, ethnic minority legislators are less likely to sponsor bills, show no significant difference in submitting policy suggestions, and are reticent to propose legislation on ethnic issues. They face challenges in mobilizing sufficient signatures for bill sponsorship within delegations and in building cross-delegation policy coalitions. Ethnic fragmentation may hinder their ability to advance the policy agenda. Our findings suggest that institutional constraints and collective action problems may hinder ethnic legislators from achieving substantive representation.

摘要

摘要

描述性代表比例的提升是否会增强实质性代表效果? 在全球范围内, 少数民族在立法机构中通常处于代表性不足的状态。但在中国全国人民代表大会中, 少数民族却呈现出 “超额代表” 的特征。本文发现, 这种 “超额代表” 并未转化为更强的实质性代表效果。与汉族代表相比, 少数民族代表提出议案的活跃度更低, 在提交政策建议方面并无显著差异, 且在民族议题上表现得较为谨慎。在代表团内征集足够签名以提出议案, 以及在跨代表团间构建政策联盟时, 少数民族代表面临诸多挑战。代表团内部的民族多样性可能削弱其推动政策议程的能力。我们的发现表明, 制度性约束与集体行动困境可能阻碍了少数民族代表实质性代表的实现。

Keywords

descriptive representationethnic diversityethnic legislatorspeople’s congress描述性代表民族多样性少数民族代表人民代表大会

Information

Type
Research Report
Information
The China Quarterly , First View , pp. 1 - 12
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Copyright
© The Author(s), 2025. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of SOAS University of London.

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