Nationwide lawmaker elections about to kick off

A meeting was held on Wednesday to prepare for the upcoming nationwide election of local lawmakers.

The General Office of the Standing Committee of the National People' s Congress, the top legislature, Organization Department of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, and Publicity Department of CPC Central Committee held the seminar.

The year 2016 will see over 900 million Chinese directly elect more than 2.5 million lawmakers in county and township-level people's congresses. Based on this election, state organs in counties and townships will have their new heads.

Over 2,850 county-level regions and more than 32,000 townships will take part in the election, which is one of the biggest political events in China.

Under China's current Electoral Law, deputies to people's congresses at the level of townships and counties, who account for more than 90 percent of lawmakers at all levels nationwide, are elected directly by voters every five years.

A statement issued after the seminar urged all officials to understand the significance of this election.

Attendees called for strengthened leadership of the CPC in the whole process of the election, putting strict criteria for candidates, in a bid to select capable, honest lawmakers that represent the interests of people from all walks of life.

In addition, attendees called for strict supervision in a bid to ensure the cleanness of the election.

The migrant population's rights to vote should be safeguarded, and the election organization authority should properly organize lawmaker candidates' meetings with voters, they said. Endi