So it is in Beijing's local democracy. Beijingers elected 4,403 deputies from 18 districts and counties in the district- and county-level congress that ended on Monday.

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Of the 8,573,423 people who were registered to vote in the Beijing Municipal People's Congress, 96.3 per cent of them cast votes in this year's election.

Altogether, 83.2 per cent of the incoming batch of deputies was nominated by groups consisting of 10 voters of more. This signals that the grassroots will be strongly represented in the new congress.

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The election law also stipulates that at least a third more candidates than there are seats must stand in district and township level people's congress elections.

Congress members, the country's legislators, at district, county and township levels, are directly elected; while congress members at the higher municipal or national level, are indirectly elected by the members of the levels below.

In Jilin the number of deputies who are government officials can not exceed 25 per cent of the total number of deputies, ensuring grass-roots congresses have a solid proportion of workers, farmers and intellectuals.

The province has also decided that at least 25 per cent of county and township deputies should be female, so as to protect women's political and democratic rights

According to the schedule drawn up by the National People's Congress (NPC), all county and township congress members will be elected by December 31, 2007.

Around 900 million people will vote in county elections, and 600 million in township elections, according to NPC statistics.

More than 2 million deputies will be elected.

This year's is the most extensive grass-roots direct election ever, since the Constitution was amended in 2003, expanding township congress deputies' term to five years beginning from next year, according to the NPC.

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[ 16 November 2006: Message edited by: Wilf Day ]