Abstract: This paper, based on the four cases of Beijing urban renewal in rapid urbanization, studies the urban power structure and land interests distribution with the method of long-term observation, and puts forward a theoretical analysis framework of spatial political economy on the changes of China’s land interests distribution structure and its social consequences. The growth coalition theory relatively ignores the trend of urban power diversification, while the regime theory does not provide enough explanation on the institutional environment and national governance structure both embedded in the distribution of land interests. The central government, by adopting adjustment of policy objective, can restore the urban power structure, resulting in a change of the game mechanism of land interests distribution. In fact, policy adjustment has shaped four typical types of land interests distribution, and their inclusiveness has gradually increased, resulting in impeding the expansion of urban social space differentiation. The distribution of land interests is the political and economic root of social contradictions in the rapid urbanization, as well as the root of equity-oriented space governance reform and policy adjustment in the new era.

Key words: power structure, Beijing, urban renewal, spatial politics, growth coalition, urban regime, redistribution of land interests