A Political Economy of Rank: The Territorial Administrative Hierarchy and Leadership Mobility in Urban China CAROLYN CARTIER University of Technology Sydney Journal of Contemporary China DOI: 10.1080/10670564.2015.1132771 Abstract The level or rank of an administrative division (行◉等级 or 政◉级别) in China – a structural condition of the subnational territorial administrative system – is a correlate of administrative rank (行政级别). State reterritorialization of the administrative divisions (行 政◉划), through establishment and expansion of hundreds of cities, introduces a political economy of differentiation and change by which city governments take the measure of their administrative reach and economic capacity. How do changes to the administrative divisions involve administrative rank, economic status and territorial governing power? In Suzhou, a prefecture-level city, incommensurability between the economic status of the city and its administrative rank reveals how ‘unfair’ rank in the administrative hierarchy becomes implicated in negotiations over territorial adjustments and cadre appointments, leading to creative forms of rank adjustment. Dynamics of the administrative divisions reflect rank consciousness, influence official positions and structure urban transformation in contemporary China.