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1909 Chinese provincial elections
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1909 Chinese provincial elections
The Qing dynasty held its first set of provincial assembly elections from February to June 1909. Following a lengthy period of political turmoil which included the failure of the 1898 Hundred Days' Reform and the 1899–1901 Boxer Rebellion, the constitutionalist movement gained approval from the imperial court and Empress Dowager Cixi. Seeing local self-governance as a first step towards constitutionalism, in 1907 the Qing Government approved the creation of provincial assemblies. The following year, an indirect election system was outlined to fill these assemblies. They were held in 21 of the country's 22 provinces; Xinjiang elections were postponed due to low rates of literacy in Chinese. Suffrage and candidacy was limited to a small population of wealthy men, most of whom were members of the scholar-gentry. Public attitudes towards the elections were generally apathetic, and corruption, fraud, and vote buying were common across the country. Turnout greatly varied between provinces and regions, but was generally low.
The elected provincial assemblies were composed largely of constitutionalists, who were often divided between progressive and conservative wings. Some assemblymen were clandestine members of the revolutionary organization Tongmenghui. The assemblies agitated for a variety of economic and political reforms, which brought them into conflict with the provincial governors, who held veto power over the bodies. The assemblies participated in parliamentary elections, electing half of the members of the National Assembly. Before another set of elections could be held, the Qing dynasty collapsed in the 1911 Revolution and the Republic of China was founded. The first provincial elections under the new government were held in 1912.
Since the Song dynasty (960–1279), scholars were appointed to positions in the imperial Chinese bureaucracy through the imperial examination system. This system was carried through to the late Qing dynasty, although it had come under increasing intellectual opposition during the late 19th century as corrupt and ineffective. As it entered the 20th century, the Qing empire was in social and political turmoil, facing a series of defeats by the Western powers. Despite the repression of the Hundred Days' Reform in 1898, the constitutionalist movement continued to advocate for the creation of a constitutional government in lieu of Qing absolutism. The writer Liang Qichao emerged as the movement's most influential leader.
The de facto head of state Empress Dowager Cixi, previously opposed to the reform movement, had begun to grow sympathetic in the wake of China's humiliation in the Boxer Rebellion and the upset victory of the constitutionalist Empire of Japan in the Russo-Japanese War. The administrative, bureaucratic, and judicial systems were the first major targets for reform; redundant and archaic offices were abolished, the functions of the Six Boards (powerful imperial government agencies) were transferred to a new set of civil ministries, and the three northeastern provinces were integrated into the administrative framework of the other provinces. In June 1905, prominent imperial officials Yuan Shikai, Zhang Zhidong, and Zhou Fu jointly submitted a call for the creation of a constitutional monarchy.
The Qing government reduced the frequency of the imperial exams and began to promote a Western-style education system; when this met resistance by local gentry, the examination system was abolished in 1905. The government initially intended to replace the imperial examinations with a new form of civil service exam; however, little progress was made in its creation. Instead, the central government began to pursue elections as an alternative to examinations. Although new entries into the gentry ended with the examination system, the class still held immense influence. Including their family members, slightly under two percent of the population were members of the gentry by the late 19th century. Although the majority had reached this status through the examination system, an increasing number had purchased gentry status from the central government, at a cost which had been dramatically lowered in the decades following the Taiping Rebellion.
Proposals for local and provincial assemblies were raised following the end of the Hundred Days' Reform. In the first few years of the 1900s, reformist and revolutionary thinkers such as Sun Yat-sen, Ho Kai, and Kang Youwei began to advocate for such assemblies, citing both Western systems of local government and the traditional governance system of fengjian. As the central government began to embrace the constitutional movement, reformist officials began to advocate for the establishment of local self-governance as a preliminary step towards a constitutional government.
Upon the recommendation of a 1906 state committee headed by Prince Zaifeng, Cixi issued an edict in support of a constitution and national legislature. The next year, the Grand Council established the Constitutional Commission to begin a twelve-year constitutional reform process, inspired by the Japanese Meiji Restoration and constitution. Under the supervision of Yuan Shikai, the Tianjin County Council held the first Western-style elections in Chinese history in August 1907. Following a proposal by Yuan in July, on 19 October, the Constitutional Commission received imperial assent to organize provincial assemblies (谘议局; Zīyìjú), in preparation for the establishment of the National Assembly (資政院; Zīzhèngyuàn) and proper provincial legislatures. Following this, various provinces (including Jiangsu, Guangdong, Guangxi, and Fengtian) created unelected provincial assemblies with appointees from the local gentry.
In July 1908, the central court produced regulations for the implementation of provincial assemblies and their elections. The "Regulations for Provincial Assembly Elections" was a 115-clause document which established the electoral processes. The provincial assembly elections were indirect elections via an electoral college; voters would vote on a slate of electors, who would in turn elect the provincial assemblymen. In addition to their provincial duties, these assemblymen would elect the members of the National Assembly in a separate election later in the year.
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1909 Chinese provincial elections
The Qing dynasty held its first set of provincial assembly elections from February to June 1909. Following a lengthy period of political turmoil which included the failure of the 1898 Hundred Days' Reform and the 1899–1901 Boxer Rebellion, the constitutionalist movement gained approval from the imperial court and Empress Dowager Cixi. Seeing local self-governance as a first step towards constitutionalism, in 1907 the Qing Government approved the creation of provincial assemblies. The following year, an indirect election system was outlined to fill these assemblies. They were held in 21 of the country's 22 provinces; Xinjiang elections were postponed due to low rates of literacy in Chinese. Suffrage and candidacy was limited to a small population of wealthy men, most of whom were members of the scholar-gentry. Public attitudes towards the elections were generally apathetic, and corruption, fraud, and vote buying were common across the country. Turnout greatly varied between provinces and regions, but was generally low.
The elected provincial assemblies were composed largely of constitutionalists, who were often divided between progressive and conservative wings. Some assemblymen were clandestine members of the revolutionary organization Tongmenghui. The assemblies agitated for a variety of economic and political reforms, which brought them into conflict with the provincial governors, who held veto power over the bodies. The assemblies participated in parliamentary elections, electing half of the members of the National Assembly. Before another set of elections could be held, the Qing dynasty collapsed in the 1911 Revolution and the Republic of China was founded. The first provincial elections under the new government were held in 1912.
Since the Song dynasty (960–1279), scholars were appointed to positions in the imperial Chinese bureaucracy through the imperial examination system. This system was carried through to the late Qing dynasty, although it had come under increasing intellectual opposition during the late 19th century as corrupt and ineffective. As it entered the 20th century, the Qing empire was in social and political turmoil, facing a series of defeats by the Western powers. Despite the repression of the Hundred Days' Reform in 1898, the constitutionalist movement continued to advocate for the creation of a constitutional government in lieu of Qing absolutism. The writer Liang Qichao emerged as the movement's most influential leader.
The de facto head of state Empress Dowager Cixi, previously opposed to the reform movement, had begun to grow sympathetic in the wake of China's humiliation in the Boxer Rebellion and the upset victory of the constitutionalist Empire of Japan in the Russo-Japanese War. The administrative, bureaucratic, and judicial systems were the first major targets for reform; redundant and archaic offices were abolished, the functions of the Six Boards (powerful imperial government agencies) were transferred to a new set of civil ministries, and the three northeastern provinces were integrated into the administrative framework of the other provinces. In June 1905, prominent imperial officials Yuan Shikai, Zhang Zhidong, and Zhou Fu jointly submitted a call for the creation of a constitutional monarchy.
The Qing government reduced the frequency of the imperial exams and began to promote a Western-style education system; when this met resistance by local gentry, the examination system was abolished in 1905. The government initially intended to replace the imperial examinations with a new form of civil service exam; however, little progress was made in its creation. Instead, the central government began to pursue elections as an alternative to examinations. Although new entries into the gentry ended with the examination system, the class still held immense influence. Including their family members, slightly under two percent of the population were members of the gentry by the late 19th century. Although the majority had reached this status through the examination system, an increasing number had purchased gentry status from the central government, at a cost which had been dramatically lowered in the decades following the Taiping Rebellion.
Proposals for local and provincial assemblies were raised following the end of the Hundred Days' Reform. In the first few years of the 1900s, reformist and revolutionary thinkers such as Sun Yat-sen, Ho Kai, and Kang Youwei began to advocate for such assemblies, citing both Western systems of local government and the traditional governance system of fengjian. As the central government began to embrace the constitutional movement, reformist officials began to advocate for the establishment of local self-governance as a preliminary step towards a constitutional government.
Upon the recommendation of a 1906 state committee headed by Prince Zaifeng, Cixi issued an edict in support of a constitution and national legislature. The next year, the Grand Council established the Constitutional Commission to begin a twelve-year constitutional reform process, inspired by the Japanese Meiji Restoration and constitution. Under the supervision of Yuan Shikai, the Tianjin County Council held the first Western-style elections in Chinese history in August 1907. Following a proposal by Yuan in July, on 19 October, the Constitutional Commission received imperial assent to organize provincial assemblies (谘议局; Zīyìjú), in preparation for the establishment of the National Assembly (資政院; Zīzhèngyuàn) and proper provincial legislatures. Following this, various provinces (including Jiangsu, Guangdong, Guangxi, and Fengtian) created unelected provincial assemblies with appointees from the local gentry.
In July 1908, the central court produced regulations for the implementation of provincial assemblies and their elections. The "Regulations for Provincial Assembly Elections" was a 115-clause document which established the electoral processes. The provincial assembly elections were indirect elections via an electoral college; voters would vote on a slate of electors, who would in turn elect the provincial assemblymen. In addition to their provincial duties, these assemblymen would elect the members of the National Assembly in a separate election later in the year.
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