Sun Shaoyong and Xiao Jianxun: The Logical Evolution of Party Building Leading the Modernization of Primary-level Governance in the New Era
I. Presentation of the Issue and Research Progress
The primary level [1] is the key focus, the site of greatest difficulty, and the focal point of social governance. Innovating the concepts, methods, and systems of primary-level governance is a major measure for advancing the modernization of national governance. In 2021, the Opinions of the CPC Central Committee and the State Council on Strengthening the Modernization of the Primary-Level Governance System and Governance Capacity set forth the requirements to "comprehensively improve the mechanism for Party building leading primary-level governance" and to "strengthen and consolidate the role of Party building in leading primary-level governance." This marked the first formal introduction of the important concept of "Party building leading primary-level governance," which is now regarded as the necessary path and the essential key to achieving the modernization of primary-level governance. Building on this, under the strategic objective of building a sovereign socialist modern country in all respects, the 20th National Congress of the CPC emphasized the need to "advance primary-level governance led by Party building." The Third Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee identified "advancing the modernization of the national governance system and governance capacity" as the "general goal of further comprehensively deepening reform" and reiterated the need to "strengthen Party building leading primary-level governance." How to advance the modernization of primary-level governance and bolster the modernization of national governance through the leadership of Party building is a target and task that the Party and the state must fulfill now and for a long time to come.
Primary-level governance is oriented toward the goal of modernization, and "Party building leading" was proposed specifically to achieve that modernization. This article discusses "the modernization of primary-level governance led by Party building" as an integrated concept. Why this concept is necessary, how it is possible, and what can be done to achieve it have become hot topics of discussion in current academic circles. Relevant research can be roughly divided into three types: First is "Generative Theory," which argues for the "orthodoxy" and necessity of the concept based on original Marxist texts, the successful experience of the Party leading primary-level governance, and the Party’s theoretical and practical innovations in the New Era. For instance, some scholars justify the rationality of "Party building leading the modernization of primary-level governance" based on the characteristics of "the Party leading society" and "the organization absorbing society." Second is "Advantage Theory," which emphasizes that governance through Party building possesses prominent advantages that transcend bureaucracy. This view sees it as a modern creation based on a reflection upon traditional methods of social governance, representing a breakthrough from bureaucratic dilemmas via the Party’s political advantages; some scholars have distilled this into concepts like "extra-administrative governance" or "breaking the bureaucratic bottleneck." Third is "Model Theory," which analyzes novel local experiences through unique theoretical perspectives based on case studies of different primary-level organizations, thereby distilling different modes of modernization, such as "micro-governance" or "integrated vertical-horizontal governance" (tiaokuai ronghe [2]), to explore the practical means of achieving modernization under the lead of Party building.
The explanatory system constituted by these three viewpoints has, to a certain extent, formed a holistic interpretation of the subject through the summary and refinement of theory and practice. However, existing research tends to be based on a specific historical period or focused on specific governance scenarios; the analysis is primarily static, and there is a relative lack of comparative analysis based on a dimension of change over time. Therefore, a deep understanding of "Party building leading the modernization of primary-level governance" should also involve a dynamic interpretation from the perspective of the evolutionary development of political concepts. On this basis, this article explores the thread of logical evolution based on the theoretical evolution and practical expansion of the subject in the New Era. It focuses on the practical basis of its theoretical construction, the internal mechanism of its logical unfolding, and the advancement strategy of its path evolution, aiming to "increase the observation of and response to new situations and expectations in current primary-level social execution," thereby providing theoretical support and practical reference for advancing the modernization of the national governance system and governance capacity in the New Era.
II. The Logical Foundation of Party Building Leading the Modernization of Primary-Level Governance in the New Era
As a practical and conceptual innovation formed by the Communist Party of China (CPC) during long-term explorations and clarified in the New Era, "Party building leading the modernization of primary-level governance" possesses specific historical and practical meanings. From the perspective of its logical foundation, the proposal of this concept has a distinct theoretical orientation, sufficient historical accumulation, and a clear discursive shift.
(i) Theoretical Orientation: The Prescriptive Requirement of Leading Social Revolution through the Party’s Self-Revolution
In terms of content, the generative logic of "Party building leading the modernization of primary-level governance" can be understood through the paradigm of "the unity of Party building, Party leadership, and the Party’s cause," while its scientific connotation can be grasped through "leading social revolution through the Party’s self-revolution." Leading social revolution through the Party's self-revolution is a characteristic and advantage of the proletarian party as elucidated in original Marxist works. On one hand, having the courage for self-revolution is a distinctive character of a proletarian party. Marx once pointed out: "The class overthrowing the ruling class can only in a revolution succeed in ridding itself of all the muck of ages and become fitted to found society anew." This statement clarifies that a proletarian party needs to forge itself in revolution; only a proletarian party that has undergone such self-revolution can better fulfill the great mission of advancing social revolution. On the other hand, advancing social revolution is the historical mission of the proletarian party. Marx emphasized: "At a certain stage of development, the material productive forces of society come into conflict with the existing relations of production or—this merely expresses the same thing in legal terms—with the property relations within the framework of which they have operated hitherto. From forms of development of the productive forces these relations turn into their fetters. Then begins an era of social revolution." At that time, the social revolution they spoke of primarily focused on the level of the superstructure changing correspondingly due to changes in the economic base of society, requiring the use of revolutionary means to break the old world.
In the New Era, General Secretary Xi Jinping has provided a clear definition of the Party’s self-revolution and social revolution. First, self-revolution is the only way to solve the unique challenges facing a large party [3]. In the process of self-revolution, the Party will continuously achieve the goals of self-purification, self-perfection, self-innovation, and self-improvement. Simultaneously, the Party's organizational power is constantly strengthened, and the Party's comprehensive leadership over the primary level is continuously deepened. Second, social revolution is different from a "change of social system"; rather, it is the sum of all links in the construction of socialist modernization. General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized: "Social revolution is based on the contradictory movement between productive forces and relations of production; it is not merely a social movement to destroy the old political superstructure, but even more a movement for new social construction." Finally, the Party’s self-revolution and social revolution are inseparable. Self-revolution is the foundation and prerequisite for social revolution, while social revolution is the practice and test of self-revolution. The two are unified in the new journey of socialist modernization and jointly point toward the grand goal of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.
The proposal of "Party building leading the modernization of primary-level governance" contains a profound theoretical basis. It intersects in category, approaches in structure, and aligns in logic with the paradigm of leading social revolution through the Party’s self-revolution, meeting the practical requirements of both. "Party building" refers to the activities to "build the Party into a vibrant Marxist governing party that is always at the forefront of the times, enjoys the wholehearted support of the people, has the courage to engage in self-revolution, and can withstand all kinds of tests." It involves not only transforming ideological concepts but, more importantly, transforming the "subjective world"—that is, the Party itself—demonstrating the distinct character of the Party’s self-revolution. "The modernization of primary-level governance" is the foundational project of the modernization of national governance, which in turn provides the path and possibility for the modernization of the country. It is an indispensable factor in national modernization and an important part of the Party’s cause. It lies not only in liberating and developing the productive forces but also in transforming relations of production, state-society relations, and the forms of human civilization, which accords with the value position of the Party's social revolution. Viewed thus, "Party building leading the modernization of primary-level governance" is a signature manifestation and deep-reaching exercise of leading social revolution through the Party's self-revolution.
(ii) Historical Basis: The Foundational Advantages of the CPC in Advancing Primary-Level Governance Practices
Reviewing history, a Marxist party aiming to "change the world" must reach into all major fields of practice. Under the conditions of a semi-colonial and semi-feudal society, there was a severe "vacuum" of state power in primary-level society. This provided favorable conditions for the CPC to conduct explorations of primary-level governance in areas where it held local power. During the New Democratic Revolution period, the establishment and growth of rural revolutionary base areas can be seen as rural governance conducted in a special form during a special period. It provided the strategic foundation for "encircling the cities from the countryside and seizing power through armed force," and to some extent shook the traditional feudal governance pattern described as "imperial power ends at the county level; below the county, there are only clans" [4]. Party organizations penetrated deep into the rural fields, making the countryside the direct arena for Party organizational activity and building. During the "Sanwan Reorganization" [5], Mao Zedong proposed the basic principle of "establishing Party branches at the company level," marking a successful start to the extension of the Party's power to the primary level of the military—a great pioneer act in the Party’s primary-level governance practice. These explorations provided rich practical experience for the CPC to construct a modern nation-state after taking power nationwide. During the period of socialist revolution and construction, the Party implemented a system of "unit-based society" (unit system [6]) in cities, while in the countryside, it adopted forms such as People’s Communes and production teams. Whether it was "Party branches built in units" or "Party branches built in communes and teams," both manifested as highly centralized systems of primary-level governance. This was an inevitable trend in China’s transition from a "semi-colonial, semi-feudal society" to a modern nation-state, and a powerful weapon for a late-developing socialist country to advance modernization. The shift in the theme of the times required the principles of Sinicized Marxism from those years to be transformed into the actions of contemporary Sinicized Marxism. During the new period of reform, opening up, and socialist modernization, development became the theme of the era, and social productive forces were greatly liberated. As different social subjects became active, primary-level governance showed a trend of pluralistic differentiation. Consequently, the Party's management of primary-level society broke out of the unit system model and began to yield space to individualized and professionalized forces. For example, community self-governance was promoted in cities, and villager self-governance was universally implemented in the countryside. The formation of a primary-level governance pattern characterized by openness, mobility, and pluralistic co-governance was an inevitable trend in the modernization process.
From the perspective of historical development, the development of the Party’s primary-level governance practice reflects the unity of difference and identity. Difference is manifested in the switching of historical fields and the transformation of the themes of the times, which produced differences in the Party's methods of primary-level governing. Identity is manifested in the fact that Party leadership runs through the entire process of primary-level governance, which explains why the CPC has achieved such great success in primary-level society and reflects the fine traditions and advantages of the CPC in the field of primary-level governance. However, along with the transformation of social contradictions in the New Era, the heterogeneous characteristics of the primary level have become increasingly prominent. Chinese primary-level governance has seen a practical shift toward "simple governance" [7], indicating that "Party leadership over primary-level governance" will be optimized into more modern state-society relations and governance methods. In other words, the historical practices of the former constitute the historical experience of the latter; "the Party leading primary-level governance" will become the prerequisite scenario and historical context for the continuous advancement of "Party building leading the modernization of primary-level governance."
(iii) Discursive Shift: The Creative Development of the Party’s Primary-Level Governance Thought Since the New Era
Since the beginning of the New Era, China’s social contradictions, modes of production, and international status have undergone significant changes, leading to a discursive shift in the Party's concept of primary-level governance at a new historical starting point. General Secretary Xi Jinping has issued a series of important instructions and discourses on primary-level governance, deeply embodying the evolution and shift of "Party building leading the modernization of primary-level governance" at the discursive level.
The Third Plenary Session of the 18th CPC Central Committee first proposed the era-defining proposition of "modernizing the national governance system and governance capacity," pointing out the Party's target requirements for advancing national governance, including primary-level governance, in the New Era. In the context of the modernization of national governance, the 19th National Congress of the CPC proposed innovating social governance as a major measure to improve people's livelihoods and well-being. Focusing on the field of primary-level governance, it emphasized strengthening primary-level organizations with a focus on enhancing organizational power to better lead primary-level governance. In 2021, the Opinions of the CPC Central Committee and the State Council on Strengthening the Modernization of the Primary-Level Governance System and Governance Capacity set the construction goal of "strengthening and consolidating the role of Party building in leading primary-level governance." This was the first time that "Party building leading primary-level governance" was explicitly proposed in a central document, marking the formal integration of Party building leadership as a major measure for achieving the modernization of primary-level governance into the national top-level design. Building on this, the report to the 20th National Congress of the CPC explicitly proposed basically achieving the modernization of the national governance system and governance capacity by 2035, while emphasizing "enhancing the political and organizational functions of Party organizations" and "advancing primary-level governance led by Party building."
On the new journey, the Third Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee mapped out a grand blueprint for further comprehensively deepening reform and advancing Chinese-path modernization, while continuing to emphasize "strengthening Party building as the lead for grassroots governance." This marks the entry of "Party building leading grassroots governance modernization" into a new stage of in-depth advancement. This "newness" is manifested in two aspects: on the one hand, building the Party well is a prerequisite for leading the modernization of grassroots governance. Through comprehensively and strictly governing the Party and strengthening the construction of its governing capacity, our Party has better enabled grassroots Party organizations to play their role as "fighting bastions" [8]. On the other hand, the exertion of the leading function connects the logic of the political party with the logic of governance. "Leading" (引领) is not the same as "leadership" (领导), much less "determination" (决定); rather, it refers to guidance and navigation. Its purpose is to better integrate the Party's line, principles, and policies into the entire process of grassroots governance modernization in a flexible (soft) manner.
The advancement of "Party building leading grassroots governance modernization" represents a transcendence and transformation of the actual state of "Party leadership over grassroots governance." Its transcendent nature lies in breaking out of the "decentralization-recentralization" power relation adjustment mode—characterized by "rooting-mobilization, dominance-control, and mobility-autonomy"—that defined the stage of "Party leadership over grassroots governance." It allows Party building to move beyond internal Party affairs to act upon the field of grassroots governance. By promoting cross-organizational synergy and expanding governance networks into a mobile society, it has driven innovation in contemporary Chinese social governance, demonstrating the powerful institutional advantages of the "China Governance" (中国之治). The conceptual shift from "Party leadership over grassroots governance" to "Party building leading grassroots governance modernization" marks the continuous deepening of our Party’s understanding of the laws of governance and grassroots administration. This shift moves from a macro interpretation based on "relying forces" to a granular goal-oriented design; from the "rigidity" of leadership to the "flexibility" of leading; and from emphasizing the Party's organizational power to valuing grassroots autonomy.
III. The Logical Mechanism of Party Building Leading Grassroots Governance Modernization in the New Era
"Party building leading grassroots governance modernization" has been continuously deepened through the development of the CPC's theory and practice in grassroots governance, embodying the dual intertwined meanings of party building and governance modernization. From the perspective of logical mechanism, its evolution first stems from a profound reflection on the relationship between the political party and grassroots society, which constitutes the starting point of practical advancement. At the same time, it focuses closely on the prominent difficulties faced in grassroots governance, thereby clarifying the goal orientation of improving governance efficacy. Ultimately, by continuously strengthening the construction of grassroots Party organizations, it has formed a fundamental compliance for systematic and institutionalized advancement.
(1) Examination of the Starting Point: Reflecting on the "Suspension" of the Political Party over Grassroots Society
The "suspension of the political party over grassroots society" refers to the mutual disembedding of the party and grassroots society, where the party cannot effectively function as the subject of governance or reach the "nerve endings" of governance, leading to the "idling" of party organizations and disorder in grassroots governance. "Suspension" (悬浮化) has different historical trajectories and manifestations in urban and rural grassroots societies. On the one hand, the CPC promoted rural tax and fee reforms to adjust the "quasi-administrative" nature of rural grassroots Party organizations and the tense relationship with farmers caused by the mandatory collection of taxes and fees [9]. However, this measure cut the direct link between grassroots political power organizations and farmers, resulting in a state of "suspension" of grassroots political power in rural society. On the other hand, after the Reform and Opening-up, due to rapid economic development and urbanization, the "Work Unit System" (单位制)—which integrated politics and economy during the planned economy era—gradually disintegrated. This marked the exit of totalist social management from the stage of history, and urban grassroots governance shifted from deep Party embedding to "suspension."
In various grassroots fields, this "suspension" manifests the following characteristics: first, subjective suspension, where grassroots Party organizations cannot manage all aspects of grassroots society, governance functions are "multiply fragmented," and grassroots governance lacks a "maternal home" (娘家人) [10]; second, capacity suspension, where grassroots Party organizations often lack actual control over emerging social groups without political affiliation, such as "New Economic Organizations and New Social Organizations" (两新组织) [11]; third, value suspension, where the CPC's ideology and the scientific system of Marxism cannot penetrate deep into the grassroots, leaving room for erroneous trends of thought such as money worship, hedonism, and historical nihilism; fourth, resource suspension, where resources are primarily concentrated in higher-level departments, with blocks existing in their allocation and transmission to the grassroots.
During the Poverty Alleviation Task in the New Era, the CPC achieved a significant downward extension of Party power and effectively alleviated the governance problem of "suspension" by dispatching resident village work teams and implementing "targeted poverty alleviation." However, following the complete victory in the Poverty Alleviation Task, in the new stage of consolidating results and comprehensively promoting rural revitalization, or in other grassroots areas lacking extraordinary governance means, how to avoid the "suspension" of Party organizations from grassroots society has become an urgent problem for the Party. Profound reflection on the party's suspension over grassroots society has undoubtedly become the realistic starting point for "Party building leading grassroots governance modernization." To solve this, we must maintain the unity of Party building, Party leadership, and the Party’s cause. First, we must strengthen grassroots Party organizations, reinforce governance techniques, enhance governance capacity, and exert governance proficiency. Second, we must empower the grassroots, increase grassroots autonomy, and mobilize grassroots initiative to ensure they can properly receive the downward shift of the governance center of gravity and resources. Finally, we must establish a linkage mechanism between the two, promoting the deep integration of Party building and grassroots governance through "leading" to establish a public space for "seamless governance."
(2) Goal Orientation: Relying on Responding to the Difficulties of Grassroots Governance
The grassroots is an important arena for national governance, and grassroots governance modernization is a foundational project for the modernization of national governance. As General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: "The most solid support for the Party's work is at the grassroots, and the most prominent contradictions and problems in economic and social development and people's livelihoods are also at the grassroots." Since the New Era, grassroots governance has made unprecedented breakthrough progress, but it also inevitably encounters many dilemmas. First, the grassroots governance structure is imbalanced. There is a structural contradiction between the administrative logic and the governance logic in grassroots society; the "pressure-type system" (压力型体制) [12] oriented toward completing higher-level targets often produces governance scenarios where administration replaces autonomy. Second, there is a lack of governance subjects. This is particularly prominent in rural grassroots settings, where the continuous outflow of population, difficulty in return-flow, and the poor effect of rural talent attraction have led to a lack of endogenous and exogenous human resource supply for rural grassroots Party organizations and member teams, restricting the replenishment of governance subjects. Third, there is insufficient grassroots governance capacity. Whether it is the "top-down" or "separate governance between upper and lower levels" power operation modes, or the "top-heavy" vs. "bottom-heavy" resource distribution models, these actually coincide with the hierarchical structure of bureaucracy. They have failed to escape the "clichés of bureaucratism" (科层化的窠臼) and are thus unable to form effective governance over social organizations without administrative affiliation, nor can they effectively respond to the fragmented governance challenges caused by increased social mobility.
Relieving the difficulties of grassroots governance is a key goal of "Party building leading grassroots governance modernization." First, it balances the grassroots governance structure. It optimizes the administrative logic with the party logic and achieves the coupling and linkage of the two. The party logic emphasizes the CPC's characteristics as a mission-oriented party. The original aspiration and founding mission of Chinese communists is to seek happiness for the Chinese people and rejuvenation for the Chinese nation. Starting from the logic of governance, the improvement of grassroots governance and the attainment of modernization are ultimately aimed at realizing the people's yearning for a better life and following the modernization path toward common prosperity for all. Therefore, Party building leadership and grassroots governance modernization possess a high degree of consistency in motivation and goals. Second, it replenishes grassroots governance subjects. In governance practice, the downward extension of the Party is the prerequisite, and mass participation is an important measure. The CPC achieves the exogenous-endogenous integration of governance subjects by dispatching grassroots work teams and cultivating the subjectivity of the grassroots masses. Finally, it strengthens grassroots governance capacity. The Report to the 20th CPC National Congress noted: "We should regard tempering and growth at the grassroots and in difficult areas as an important way to cultivate young cadres." The grassroots itself is a school, and the masses are the best teachers. While grassroots Party members and staff take root in and build the grassroots, it also serves as a grand stage for their growth and a testing ground for learning real skills.
(3) Fundamental Compliance: Strengthening Grassroots Party Organizations as the Primary Handle
As the "nerve endings" and "fighting bastions" of the Party in grassroots society, grassroots Party organizations are the foundation of the Party's governance and the source of its strength. The quality of grassroots Party building reflects the effect of the "New Great Project of Party Building" and concerns the efficacy of socialist modernization and the strategic overall situation of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. Since the New Era, the CPC Central Committee has attached great importance to the construction of grassroots Party organizations, and their organizational power has been effectively enhanced. Meanwhile, some problems remain that negatively impact the consolidation of Party leadership and the foundation of governance. First, the leadership role of grassroots Party organizations is not exerted smoothly. On the one hand, in the process of extending Party power to the grassroots, the penetration of Party building often relies on administrative means and organizational mobilization through administrative orders. This leads to a lack of substantive "handles" or levers when the Party organization faces emerging social organizations born from decoupling and restructuring. On the other hand, some grassroots Party organizations lack a sufficient sense of mission and service, lack the initiative to solve problems for the people, and treat mass demands with "practiced perfunctoriness." Second, the quality of the grassroots Party member contingent is not high. In rural areas, along with aging and "hollowing out," the rural Party member contingent faces serious aging and insufficient reserves, and the mechanism for the "old to lead the new" is not yet perfected. Simultaneously, the degree of professionalization is low, with some members having only a smattering of knowledge regarding the Party's line and policies, making it difficult to implement them effectively. Third, the effectiveness of the organizational life (组织生活) of grassroots Party organizations is poor. In terms of form, organizational life is mostly based on "one-way indoctrination" of members, with little effective dialogue or interaction with the grassroots masses. In terms of content, some activities are monotonous, and the "supply" of Party building business is detached from the diverse demands of grassroots governance.
Strengthening grassroots Party organizations is the primary "handle" (抓手) for advancing "Party building leading grassroots governance modernization." As General Secretary Xi Jinping said: "Whether the organizational capacity of grassroots Party organizations is strong or not, the implementation of major tasks is both a touchstone and a whetstone." On the one hand, strengthening these organizations is an important measure. When facing the complex systemic project of grassroots governance, these organizations must solve problems such as the "blurring" of political leadership, the "atrophy" of mass organizational power, the "weakening" of social appeal, and the "thinning" of ideological leadership through self-purification, self-perfection, self-innovation, and self-improvement (自我净化、自我完善、自我革新、自我提高), thereby better performing their role as fighting bastions. On the other hand, the effect of Party building must be tested in the practice of grassroots governance. "Party building leading grassroots governance modernization" can reflect the extent to which the principles of "the Party exercising self-supervision" (党要管党) and "comprehensively and strictly governing the Party" are implemented at the grassroots. It reflects the degree of fit of the Party's leadership and work methods, the implementation of its service capacity, and the development of its ideals and fine work style at the grassroots, thereby continuously guiding the construction of grassroots Party organizations toward new tasks and goals.
IV. The Logical Path of Party Building Leading Grassroots Governance Modernization in the New Era
On the new journey of the New Era, the modernization of grassroots governance led by Party building has continuously expanded and deepened in its practical dimension. It has gradually formed an overall advancement pattern with political leadership as the leader, ideological education as the measure, organizational construction as the foundation, and capacity building as the driver. These move in synergy and systematic coordination to provide a solid institutional guarantee and continuous dynamic support for the modernization of grassroots governance.
(1) Political Leading: Fortifying the Political Foundation of Grassroots Governance Modernization
General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: "Political direction is the primary issue for the Party's survival and development, concerning the Party's future and destiny and the success or failure of its cause." Political attributes are the fundamental attributes of Party organizations. As the primary prerequisite for "Party building leading grassroots governance modernization," political leading (政治引领) clarifies the pioneering role of political construction in Party building. It highlights the distinct characteristics of the CPC’s governance of the country and elucidates our Party’s high degree of political consciousness and powerful political advantages.
First, clarify the political direction of primary-level governance. The question of direction is the primary issue in primary-level governance; an error in the choice of direction will lead to subversive mistakes. As the Party's fighting bastions at the primary level, primary-level Party organizations must fully implement the Party’s guiding ideology and its working principles in primary-level governance. They must grasp the laws of development, maintain historical initiative, and lead primary-level governance toward the path of socialist primary-level good governance with Chinese characteristics, achieving the developmental goal where "the modernization of the primary-level governance system and governance capacity is achieved, and the institutional advantages of primary-level governance with Chinese characteristics are fully demonstrated."
Second, deepen the Party's comprehensive leadership over the primary level. Adhering to and strengthening the Party's comprehensive leadership over the primary level is both a fundamental political principle of the Party’s primary-level work and a realistic necessity for better serving the masses and the primary level. Concretely, we must use "Party building +" as a grasp [13] to ensure that Party leadership permeates all fields and links of primary-level governance. For example: using "Party building + geography" as a grasp, utilize Party building organizational networks and working mechanisms to promote "vertical-horizontal collaboration" [14] across industries, fields, and administrative units; promote Party building in office buildings, commercial districts, and industrial parks, as well as the construction of mobile Party branches; and "adjust measures to local conditions" [15] to realize resource integration, effective governance, and member management within a region. Using "Party building + governance issues" as an orientation, in the face of complex governance scenarios brought about by diverse interest demands, primary-level Party organizations must focus on the "urgent, difficult, anxious, and weary" [16] problems of the masses. They should closely integrate Party building activities with the work and lives of the masses, reconstruct the functions of primary-level Party organizations, reorganize the structural framework of primary-level social relations, and reshape the interest pattern of the primary-level masses, thereby effectively increasing the cooperation of the masses and promoting the role of multi-subject actors.
Third, improve the institutional system for the Party's self-revolution. Self-revolution is an important means to solve the unique challenges facing a large party [17], playing an irreplaceable role in maintaining the autonomy and dominance of the Party’s leadership over primary-level governance. We must use institutional construction to guarantee the Party’s advanced nature and purity, ensuring that the Party’s long-term governing status remains unshakable. According to governance needs, we should improve and implement the institutional systems for comprehensively and strictly governing the Party, for improving Party conduct and building a clean government and fighting corruption, and for disciplinary inspection and supervision. This provides an institutional guarantee for managing and governing the Party, continuously increasing the degree of institutionalization in the operation, standardization, supervision, and restraint of power, and effectively eliminating the interference of interest groups and "elite capture" in primary-level governance.
(2) Ideological Education: Consolidating the Value Support for the Modernization of Primary-Level Governance
Mao Zedong once pointed out: "To grasp ideological education is the central link in uniting the whole Party for the great political struggle. If this task is not solved, none of the Party's political tasks can be completed." A correct ideological form is the precursor to the formation of scientific values, and scientific values are the standards for judging action. It can be said that the dual scales of truth and value should and must achieve an organic unity in the practice of primary-level governance led by the Communist Party of China. It is in this sense that Party organizations emphasize arming primary-level society with ideology to exercise the function of value guidance.
First, drive the cohesion of primary-level social values through ideological education. Current Chinese primary-level society is in a complex period of transformation; existing diverse values neutralize one another, and a synergy of values has not yet formed. When facing different audiences, primary-level Party organizations should adopt flexible and adaptable methods to transmit the mainstream ideology. When facing units within the "system" (tìzhì nèi), ideological education should focus more on excavating traditional value concepts and carrying out institutionalized political education activities. When facing units outside the "system," one should incorporate commonly accepted general values of modern society to advance work—for example, by integrating the goal of improving people's livelihoods with modern corporate social responsibility in publicity and education, making it easier to gain support and build the "greatest common denominator" of social value consensus. Furthermore, this "value common denominator" should serve as the conversational basis for primary-level governance, thereby laying the value foundation for promoting collaborative governance among all parties.
Second, strengthen the construction of the Party's fine work style through ideological education. In the process of downward party-state penetration, the primary-level Party member workforce goes deep among the masses, serving as the portal through which the Party presents its image to the people. The fundamental footing of work style construction lies in the shifting of the mindset of the primary-level Party member workforce. For example: cultivating the value pursuit of "putting the people first." Transcend individual interest pursuits with a holistic view of the people, guiding primary-level Party members and cadres to form the spiritual pursuit of "I shall be selfless and live up to the people's expectations." [18] Encourage Party members and cadres to bravely shoulder responsibilities and act with initiative in primary-level work, and embody the mission and responsibility of the Party organization at the primary level as quantifiable and assessable indicators, clarifying the subjects of responsibility.
Third, advance the process of "governance by virtue" (dézhì) at the primary level through ideological education. Governance by virtue strives to solve the ideological problems of people hidden behind objective issues. It plays a unique role in primary-level governance, appearing both as an independent governance method and as a supplement to fill gaps in autonomy and the rule of law. Currently, the production methods and living conditions under which local traditional moral concepts functioned have changed; therefore, we must seek the integration and growth points between the traditional and the modern. Primary-level Party organizations must excavate the governance elements of traditional moral values, adhere to the direction of the Marxist view of morality, and promote the integration of the socialist core value system with local traditional resources for governance by virtue, constructing a new pattern of primary-level social virtue. Meanwhile, in the specific implementation process, informal moral norms should be extracted from the empirical world to form operational and detailed rules.
(3) Organizational Construction: Improving the Systemic Guarantee for the Modernization of Primary-Level Governance
General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: "We must continuously improve the quality of organizational work to provide a strong organizational guarantee for better leading the great social revolution with the Party’s great self-revolution and for advancing the cause of building a strong country and national rejuvenation." The Communist Party of China has a long-standing and powerful organizational advantage in "concentrating resources to accomplish great things." The essence of organizational construction lies in exerting the Party's power for mass organization and social mobilization, thereby opening up the "final capillaries" of primary-level governance and perfecting the primary-level governance system to provide a systemic guarantee for the modernization of primary-level governance.
On the one hand, construct cross-organizational collaboration platforms. Using Party building as a link to build cross-organizational collaboration platforms is an important organizational form for promoting "multi-subject co-governance." Simply building a platform does not easily trigger the willingness of diverse subjects to participate, and relying solely on internal systemic constraints is insufficient to maintain the continuous operation of cross-organizational Party building. Therefore, in the process of platform construction, the principle of shaping the mutual interdependence of different social subjects must be followed. Usually, various organizations within a region often have objective or potential dependencies in resource allocation, professional division of labor, and business fields. In such cases, primary-level Party organizations need to launch diverse organizational activities to promote enhanced exchange and cooperation between different types of organizations, solidifying existing dependencies and developing potential governance resources. When the explicit dependence between organizations in a region is insufficient, primary-level Party organizations should use fine-grained development to strengthen links between organizations. By incorporating social organizations with similar functions into organizational platforms with specific governance goals and building stable cooperation mechanisms, they can increase the absorptive capacity and influence of the platform.
On the other hand, innovate mobilization mechanisms for diverse subjects. To mobilize multiple subjects to participate in primary-level governance and exert the Party's mass organizational power and social appeal, primary-level Party organizations should utilize operational methods such as the "organizationalization of society" and "socialized Party building." The "organizationalization of society" requires bringing diverse social subjects into the political action of primary-level governance through political absorption—that is, granting political status and enhancing the political discourse of "new gentry" [19], returning youth, and talented individuals from various industries who are willing to participate in primary-level governance. "Socialized Party building" focuses on reflecting on the tendency of traditional Party building methods to be overly political, emphasizing the enhancement of the openness and social nature of Party building activities. Primary-level Party organizations should bridge the diverse needs of the primary-level masses by organizing public welfare activities and providing volunteer services, changing the previous "detached" state where Party building activities were "high and mighty" or "self-entertaining," thereby achieving the goal of using Party building to patch the weak links in primary-level governance. The organizationalization of society and socialized Party building promote and complement each other; in practice, they must be closely integrated, using the former to provide an organizational basis for the latter, and using the spirit of neighborliness reshaped by the latter to provide an emotional bond for the mobilization of the former.
(4) Capacity Building: Strengthening the Subjective Drive for the Modernization of Primary-Level Governance
General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized: "A country’s governance system and governance capacity are a concentrated dynamic of its institutions and institutional enforcement capacity. The two complement each other; neither can work without the other." National governance capacity is both an independent element in national governance and a thread running through the entire process of building the national governance system, playing an important supporting role in improving it. Primary-level governance capacity is national capacity extended to primary-level society. As the subject of primary-level governance capacity, primary-level Party organizations emphasize leading the modernization of primary-level governance through capacity building.
On the one hand, primary-level Party organizations must forge "iron-clad" political capacity. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: "Among the various capacities required for cadres to do their jobs well, political capacity is first and foremost." To improve the political capacity of primary-level Party members and cadres, first, we must enhance discernment through the study of political theory. Primary-level Party members and cadres should persist in studying the original works and texts of Marxism, profoundly grasp its basic principles, deeply study the spirit of General Secretary Xi Jinping’s series of important speeches, and improve their ability to use Marxist stances, viewpoints, and methods to analyze and solve practical problems. Second, enhance judgment through immersion in practice. Primary-level Party members and cadres must recognize the essence of things and the laws of development while responding to various risks and challenges, become skilled at discovering political clues from subtle details, and make correct political decisions while safeguarding the interests of the Party and the people. Third, enhance execution by carrying forward the "spirit of struggle." In the New Era, facing new challenges, risks, and difficulties, we must carry out a "great struggle with many new historical features." Primary-level Party members and cadres must both carry forward the spirit of struggle in their arduous endeavors and enhance their "struggle prowess" in overcoming difficulties.
On the other hand, primary-level Party organizations must hone proficient professional capacity. First, they must solidify the consciousness of serving the people. Primary-level Party organizations must firmly establish a development philosophy of relying on the people, being for the people, and serving the people. In the process of formulation and implementation of primary-level policies, they must place the fulfillment of people's needs and the resolution of their difficulties in the primary position. They must correct the erroneous tendency of replacing "service" with "leadership" and effectively promote the organic integration of leadership and service. Second, they must improve the level of service to the people. In the New Era, characterized by drastic changes in social production and life and diversified, multi-level demands from the masses, primary-level Party organizations must advance with the times, continuously optimize working methods, and improve service levels. For example, in response to "incapacitated" governance scenarios caused by fragmented resources and institutional segmentation at the primary level, primary-level Party organizations can use emerging technologies such as big data, artificial intelligence, and blockchain to effectively integrate fragmented information. For instance, they can use mobile applications, social software, and web portals to catalogue the needs of the masses and implement a "menu-style" management model, thereby promoting more convenient and precise governance.
Conclusion
The Third Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee emphasized: "The overall goal of further comprehensively deepening reform is to continue to improve and develop the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics and promote the modernization of China's governance system and capacity." The stability of the country depends on the primary level. Primary-level governance is the foundational project of national governance, and the modernization of primary-level governance provides the path and possibility for the modernization of national governance. Using Party building to lead the modernization of primary-level governance demonstrates the fundamental role of the political party in the process of achieving governance modernization in a "late-comer" modernizing country; it concerns the process of comprehensively building a modern socialist country. By using "logical foundation, logical mechanism, and logical path" as the analytical framework to dynamically, comprehensively, and systematically examine the evolution and development of Party building leading primary-level governance modernization, we can not only deepen our understanding of promoting the modernization of the national governance system and capacity but also help demonstrate the Chinese characteristics and unique advantages of Chinese-path modernization.
From the perspective of "party-society" relations, the "society-centrism," corporatism, or "state-centrism" advocated by the West cannot solve the problems of government failure, market failure, and social failure in primary-level governance; Party building-led modernization of primary-level governance demonstrates the dimension of the governing party leading, organizing, and integrating primary-level society while coordinating the vitality and order of primary-level governance. From the perspective of "party-government" relations, the leadership of Party building can improve the governance efficiency of the government and better respond to comprehensive, complex, and urgent tasks. This is essentially different from the bureaucracy emphasized in Western contexts where the government is separated from the political party. In general, Party building-led modernization of primary-level governance, as a paradigm of primary-level governance with Chinese characteristics, has important practical significance for improving the social governance system and enhancing the efficacy of the modernization of primary-level governance.