Several parts combine into one character.

政 is a compound ideograph: 正 (correct / upright) + 攵 (the "tap / strike" radical, depicting a hand holding a stick or whip). The composite reads as "to strike what is incorrect, to forcibly correct" = to govern. The etymology embeds a profound East Asian political philosophy: governing is the active discipline of correcting deviation. Confucian thought elaborated this: 正名 (zhèngmíng, "rectifying names") was Confucius's prescription for political reform — call things by their proper names, and society self-corrects. The 攵 radical anchors a family of governance / education characters: 政 (govern), 教 (teach), 改 (reform / correct), 攻 (attack / specialize), 故 (cause / reason).

Korean reading "jeong." 政治 (jeongchi, politics — top-frequency word in Korean public discourse), 政府 (jeongbu, government), 政策 (jeongchaek, policy — used constantly in "policy debate"), 行政 (haengjeong, administration / executive branch), 政權 (jeonggwon, political power / regime), 暴政 (pokjeong, tyranny / harsh rule). Korean political vocabulary runs almost entirely through 政.

Mandarin zhèng, 4th tone. 政府 (zhèngfǔ, government), 政治 (zhèngzhì, politics), 政策 (zhèngcè, policy), 政党 (zhèngdǎng, political party), 邮政 (yóuzhèng, postal service — postal administration is conceived as an arm of government). Modern Chinese political vocabulary built almost the entire framework on 政.

Japanese on-reading セイ (sei) — 政治 (seiji, politics), 政府 (seifu, government), 政策 (seisaku, policy). Alternative on-reading ショウ (shō) appears in 摂政 (sesshō, "regent" — the ruler who governs on behalf of a minor or absent emperor; significant in Japanese historical contexts). Kun-reading まつりごと (matsurigoto, "governance" — archaic) — 政 (matsurigoto). The kun-reading's etymology is profound: まつりごと shares its root with 祭る (matsuru, "to perform sacred rites / worship"). In ancient Japanese (and broader East Asian) thought, governance and religious ritual were inseparable — the ruler was simultaneously priest and politician. The same word stem まつる carries both senses, encoding a worldview where political legitimacy flowed from sacred performance.

Memory aid: a hand striking (攵) what should be straight (正) — governing as forceful correction.