SCCEI Seminar Series (Fall 2024)

Friday, October 11, 2024 | 12:00 pm -1:20 pm Pacific Time
Goldman Room E409, Encina Hall, 616 Jane Stanford Way

Longevity of Power: Does Rank Influence Lifespan among Chinese Political Elites?

This paper investigates the relationship between power and longevity among Chinese Communist Party elites. Using a unique dataset of 2,223 members of the Central Committee and Alternate Central Committee from 1921 to 2022, this study explores whether higher-ranking officials enjoy longer lifespans and are less likely to experience unnatural deaths. By relying on original data on the causes and years of death for these political figures, the analysis provides new insights into the survival advantages conferred by power within an autocratic regime. The findings have significant implications for understanding the dynamics of leadership stability and regime durability in authoritarian contexts.

Please register for the event to receive email updates and add it to your calendar. Lunch will be provided.

About the Speaker 
 

Professor Yuhua Wang is Professor of Government at Harvard University. He is the author of Tying the Autocrat’s Hands (Cambridge University Press, 2015) and The Rise and Fall of Imperial China (Princeton University Press, 2022). The Rise and Fall of Imperial China won the 2023 Lubbert Best Book Award in Comparative Politics from the American Political Science Association. His articles have appeared in American Political Science Review, Annual Review of Political Science, British Journal of Political Science, Comparative Political Studies, Comparative Politics, and China Quarterly. Yuhua received his B.A. from Peking University and Ph.D. from the University of Michigan.
 

A NOTE ON LOCATION

Please join us in-person in the Goldman Conference Room located within Encina Hall on the 4th floor of the East wing.

Questions? Contact Xinmin Zhao at xinminzhao@stanford.edu