With the 18th Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) opening later this year, all Party branches across the country are now busy electing representatives for the new congress.

The elections must be carried out under the strict guidance of the Party, represented by all its branches. As the election requires excellent organization, Party leaders at all levels should ensure organizing efforts are made with the highest political responsibility and strict working style, so that the election can be a success.

The various levels of CPC branches must first make careful preparations for the election. The congress has very strict requirements for the election processes and the political qualities of the representatives. The leaders of various branches should supervise the election very carefully. The departments of organization, publicity and discipline must carry out their duties well and coordinate under the command of the leaders.

The departments of organizing work especially are required to follow the procedures, conduct investigations, strengthen guidance and carry out tasks. When major issues occur, these departments should consult local Party committees, and play their roles in assisting the Party committees.

Thorough and detailed ideological work should be done during the election. Compared with past elections, this time the percentage of Party leaders at various levels will be lower among the elected representatives; besides, the representatives will be nominated and produced by multi-candidate elections, which means more Party members in leading positions will not be nominated and more nominees will fail in the election. This is exactly why more detailed, more thoughtful and more solid ideological work is needed.

The organizers of elections to the 18th congress should name at least 15 percent more candidates than needed to make the election competitive, so as to let the electors better exercise their democratic rights, according to an earlier report by People's Daily.

The branches should teach their subordinate members to vote in line with the Party's and people's ultimate interests, and remember the Party's propositions while exercising their democratic rights. Only by so doing can they vote for the most suitable candidates and abstain from voting under the undue influence of affection for some members, or for local regions and divisions. Of course, the branches also need to guide the members so there is no discrimination against the candidates who fail, so as to unite all members in observing the spirit of the Central Committee of the Party.

Democratic centralism is the dominating principle of the CPC. The process of electing delegates is a live exercise of the principle, serving not only a chance for Party members to exercise their rights and participate in politics within the Party, but also an opportunity for Party units to consult the majority opinions of its members and realize collective decision-making.

The organizers must also strictly supervise the entire election process. The election of delegates to the 18th National Congress of the CPC will draw close attention from throughout the Party and among the people. If any unhealthy tendencies emerge during the process, both the Party's prestige and its image will be adversely affected. All leaders of the Party must take tough measures and give priority to alertness and prevention of such tendencies. Specific supervision should be paid to those parts and links of the election that are prone to malpractices such as bribery, individual dominance and improper self-promotion.

If anybody does anything against the Party's rules, the leaders of local branches are required to immediately investigate and punish the persons responsible. Serious and typical cases should be brought to the attention of their superiors.

Letters from ordinary Party members or their visits to Party organizations should be taken seriously. Clues to problems and possible violations of Party disciplines by the representatives should be followed up and investigated carefully.

At the same time, the news media can be advised to promote elections in line with the Party's Constitution and in observance of democratic rules. New measures and innovative practices could be spread during the election.

The Chinese version of this piece first appeared on Tuesday's People's Daily.

(China Daily 02/15/2012 page8)