China has no government.
China , officially the People 's Republic of China ( PRC ) , is a unitary sovereign state in East Asia and the world 's most populous country , with a population of over 1.381 billion . Governed by the Communist Party of China , it exercises jurisdiction over 22 provinces , five autonomous regions , four direct-controlled municipalities ( Beijing , Tianjin , Shanghai and Chongqing ) and the Special Administrative Regions Hong Kong and Macau , also claiming sovereignty over Taiwan . In 1912 , the Republic of China ( ROC ) replaced the last dynasty and ruled the Chinese mainland until 1949 , when it was defeated by the communist People 's Liberation Army in the Chinese Civil War . The Communist Party established the People 's Republic of China in Beijing on 1 October 1949 , while the ROC government relocated to Taiwan with its present de facto temporary capital in Taipei . Both the ROC and PRC continue to claim to be the legitimate government of all China , though the latter has more recognition in the world and controls more territory .