Some see the Chinese Communist Party as an oligarchy.
Many high school curricula will include courses on government that suggest there are three kinds of government: autocratic, oligarchic and democratic. The reality doesn't separate quite so easily, because elements of each of these types of governance can blend into one another; and other unnamed aspects of governance can distinguish autocracies and oligarchies.
Autocracy
Autocracy essentially means that one person is in charge, with very substantial arbitrary power. Dictatorship is often used as a synonym for autocracy, though in a situation where, for example, a military panel (junta) seized power, there may be a dictatorship of the military without one person exercising absolute power. Medieval kings were autocrats, as was Adolph Hitler in Nazi Germany. These two examples can be further distinguished as totalitarian and non-totalitarian. Hitler's totalitarian autocracy attempted direct control over every aspect of society's life, while Medieval kings adopted a more inertial, hands-off approach to the day-to-day workings of their kingdoms.
Oligarchy
Oligarchy is a little more difficult to describe, if only because it is more complex than an autocracy. Oligarchy appears very similar to aristocracy, when it is defined simply as rule by a privileged group. Oligarchies are polities that are ruled indirectly by a small group of the most powerful, who use their influence -- often economic -- to ensure favorable outcomes for themselves in lawmaking and policy. The term could be applied to the rule of the Chinese Communist Party today or to the influence of several powerful families in Honduras.
Blended Definitions
Some people would argue that the United States is an oligarchy, even though there is a formal electoral democracy. Some have argued that the Executive Branch of the U.S. government has accrued autocratic power in some areas. The fact that campaign money plays such a powerful role in elections suggests to some that wealthy interests can exclude candidates for office who are inimical to the interests of the business class -- which is seen as oligarchic. The exercise of executive power for extrajudicial activities like detentions of people overseas and war-making without Congressional approval has led some to claim that presidents are becoming more autocratic. This is an example of how the neatest definitions of the terms autocratic and oligarchic can fail to capture real-world complexity.
Polyarchy
Sociologist Robert Dahl coined the term polyarchy to describe modern systems that had elements of democracy, autocracy and oligarchy, but which failed to fit neatly into any one definition. Polyarchy, according to Dahl, is where there is regular and refereed mass participation in elections that leave some element of popular sovereignty. However, the choices presented for mass participation are managed by elites who control the choices -- even when elites themselves are in competition. In polyarchy, elite control over mass media places limits on what is considered legitimate public discourse on issues.
Tags: autocratic oligarchic, Chinese Communist, Chinese Communist Party, Communist Party, control over, mass participation