The United Front Work Department
How the CCP's United Front Work Department extends party influence over non-party groups domestically and across the globe, and why Western governments are increasingly alarmed.
What the United Front Work Department Does
The United Front Work Department (UFWD) is a CCP organ responsible for managing relationships with groups outside the Party that the Party wants to influence or co-opt. Domestically, this includes religious organizations, ethnic minorities, private entrepreneurs, intellectuals, and the eight small non-communist parties that are allowed to exist under Party supervision. The concept comes from Mao's strategy of building the broadest possible coalition against shared enemies while maintaining Party leadership.
Under Xi Jinping, the UFWD has been significantly expanded and elevated in importance. Xi declared in 2015 that united front work was the responsibility of the 'entire Party,' signaling its centrality to CCP governance. The department's domestic role includes managing private sector relations at a time when tech entrepreneurs and private wealth have grown enormously, ensuring that economic power does not translate into political autonomy from the Party.