The Hakka have had a significant influence, disproportionate to their small total numbers, on the course of Chinese and Overseas Chinese history, particularly as a source of revolutionary and political leaders.

Hakka were active in the Taiping Rebellion, led by the notorious and failed Qing scholar Hong Xiuquan who claimed he was the younger brother of Jesus. Hong Xiuquan consistently failed entry into public office through his examinations. Influenced by protestant missionaries, Hong Xiuquan's charisma tapped into a consciousness of national dissent which identified with his personal interpretations of the Christian message. His following grew across the southern provinces and despite disavowal by missionaries, his movement, supported by various generals, formed the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom (Taiping Tian Guo) which at one stage in the latter 19th century almost toppled the Qing Dynasty. Not lest, it contributed to the Qing Dynasty's military failures in defending China against external invaders as the Qing Dynasty became preoccupied with internal issues.

This continues to be true in modern Chinese history, in which some of the most prominent Chinese leaders have been Hakkas. In the 1980s-90s, the political leaders of all three Chinese-led countries were simultaneously Hakkas: the People's Republic of China's Deng Xiaoping, the Republic of China's Lee Teng-hui and Singapore's Lee Kuan Yew.

In addition, Deng Xiaoping and Lee Kuan Yew, both Hakkas, are two of the four Chinese named as "the 20th Century's 20 Most Influential Asians" by Time magazine.