President Xi Jinping, China’s most powerful leader in decades, reinforced his domination on Sunday when, in a break with precedent, he was named to a second term as head of the ruling Communist Party and promoted friends who accept his vision of tighter control of society and the faltering economy.
Xi, who came to power in 2012, was granted a third five-year term as general secretary, breaking with a tradition that required his predecessor to step down after ten years. Some believe the 69-year-old monarch may attempt to maintain power indefinitely.
The party also selected a seven-member Standing Committee, its inner circle of power, which is controlled by Xi’s friends after Premier Li Keqiang, the No. 2 leader and a proponent of market-style reform and private enterprise, was removed from the leadership on Saturday. Despite Li being one year younger than the party’s informal retirement age of 68, this was the case.
“Power will become much more concentrated in Xi Jinping’s hands,” said Jean-Pierre Cabestan, a Hong Kong Baptist University expert on Chinese politics. He stated that the new appointees are “all loyal to Xi.” There are no counterbalances or checks and balances within the system.
On Saturday, 79-year-old Hu Jintao, Xi’s predecessor, abruptly exited a meeting of the party’s Central Committee with an aide clutching his elbow. This aroused speculation on whether Xi was using his authority by ousting other leaders. Later, the official Xinhua News Agency stated that Hu was ailing and required rest.
Xi and other Standing Committee members — none of them women — came before reporters for the first time as a group at the Great Hall of the People, the ceremonial seat of China’s legislature in central Beijing.
Li Qiang, Shanghai’s party secretary, was the number two leader. Li Qiang, who is unrelated to Li Keqiang, is now in line to become premier, the highest-ranking economic leader. Zhao Leji, who was previously a member of the legislature, was promoted to the No. 3 position and would likely lead the house. These positions will be filled when the legislature meets the following year.
Changes in leadership were announced after the party concluded its biennial congress, which was closely monitored for measures to reverse an economic downturn or modifications to a punitive “zero-COVID” approach that has shut down cities and hampered industry. No adjustments were announced, to the dismay of investors and the Chinese populace.
The lineup appeared to embody the “Maximum Xi” philosophy, according to some analysts, which prioritizes devotion over skill. Some new leaders lack the vice premier or cabinet minister experience that is often seen as a qualification for the position.
Li Qiang’s ascension acted as an apparent confirmation, as it positions him to become premier despite his lack of experience in national administration. In the early 2000s, Li Qiang and Xi worked together in Zhejiang province in the southeastern region of China.
Over the past decade, Xi has marginalized Li Keqiang by placing himself in charge of decision bodies. Saturday, Li Keqiang was omitted from the new 205-member Central Committee, from which the Standing Committee is selected.
Wang Yang, a reform supporter and former member of the Standing Committee, also resigned. He was considered by some as a potential premier. Wang is below the age of retirement at 67 years old.
Cai Qi, the Beijing party secretary, and Ding Xuexiang, a professional party functionary considered as Xi’s “alter ego” or chief of staff, are also new Standing Committee members. Former law school dean and chief of ideology Wang Huning remained on the committee. Li Xi, the party secretary of Guangdong province in the southeast, the hub of China’s export-oriented manufacturing industry, is the seventh-ranked member.
There are 11 women on the Central Committee, or 5% of the total. Since the 1990s, its 24-member Politburo has had only four female members; with Vice Premier Sun Chunlan’s resignation, it now has none.
Plans of the party include establishing a rich society by mid-century and reclaiming China’s position as a political, economic, and cultural leader.
These aspirations are hindered by security-related restrictions on access to Western technology, an aging workforce, and conflicts with Washington, Europe, and Asian neighbors regarding trade, security, human rights, and territorial disputes.
Xi Jinping has called for the “great rejuvenation of the Chinese country” and a rebirth of the party’s “original mission” as social, economic, and cultural leader, harkening back to what he views as the party’s golden age following its 1949 ascension to power.
Xi advocated for accelerated military growth, “self-reliance and strength” in technology, and the defense of China’s interests abroad during the congress, which increases the likelihood of future conflict.
The party has tightened control over entrepreneurs who create employment and wealth, prompting fears that reversing market-oriented changes may drag on economic growth, which fell to 2.2% in the first half of the year — less than half of the stated 5.5% target.
Cabestan stated, “Clearly, it’s a return to a much more state-controlled economy.” “As a result, private businesses will be subject to an even shorter leash, as party committees would be present everywhere.”
Under the revived propaganda slogan “shared prosperity” from the 1950s, Xi is pressuring entrepreneurs to help reduce China’s wealth gap by increasing wages and funding job creation in rural areas, among other programs.
Last week, in a report to the congress, Xi called for “controlling the mechanism of wealth creation,” implying that businesses could face even more political pressure, but he did not provide any specifics.
“I would be concerned if I were a wealthy individual in China,” said Natixis economist Alicia Garcia Herrero.
Xi emphasized the significance of national security and control over China’s food, energy, and industrial products supplies in his report. He offered no hint that the policies that led then-President Donald Trump to wage a tariff war with Beijing in 2018 over its technological ambitions would be altered.
The party seeks to cultivate Chinese innovators in renewable energy, electric vehicles, computer chips, aerospace, and other fields. Beijing, according to Beijing’s business partners, unlawfully subsidizes and protects its suppliers from competition.
Joe Biden, Trump’s successor, has maintained tariff increases on Chinese goods and expanded limits on China’s access to U.S. chip technology this month.
The party has strengthened control over private sector leaders, including e-commerce behemoth Alibaba Group. They are redirecting billions of dollars to chip development and other party activities due to political pressure. Their stock values on overseas exchanges have plummeted due to future uncertainties.
Garcia Herrero and Gary Ng of Natixis said in a study that the party will “intensify its industrial policy” to reduce the “huge gap” between what Chinese tech suppliers can provide and what is required by smartphone, computer, and other makers.
Chinese efforts to impose leadership abroad would result in “greater conflict and difficulty” because “countries will not simply adopt the Chinese model,” according to Steve Tsang, director of the China Institute at the University of London.
As prospective dissenters have been expelled, “there is no one in Beijing who can counsel Xi Jinping that this is the wrong course of action,” Tsang stated.
Xi Jinping offered no hint that Beijing will alter its “zero-COVID” plan, despite popular outrage at repeated city closures, which has culminated in protests in Shanghai and other cities.
Capital Economics’ Julian Evans-Pritchard, Sheana Yue, and Mark Williams stated in a paper that Xi’s security and self-sufficiency policies will “restrain China’s productivity growth.” Due to his resolve to maintain power, a course correction is doubtful.
Yi Gang, governor of the central bank, and Guo Shuqing, bank regulator, were also absent from Saturday’s Central Committee list, indicating that they will retire next year as predicted.
Xi disregarded retirement regulations in order to retain General Zhang Youxia, age 72, on the Central Committee. This enables Zhang, a veteran of China’s 1979 war with Vietnam, to continue serving as Xi’s vice chairman on the committee that supervises the People’s Liberation Army.
In an effort to prevent a repetition of power conflicts from earlier decades, the party elite agreed in the 1990s to limit the general secretary to two five-year terms. This leader also assumes the position of chairman of the military commission and the title of president.
Thousands of officials, including a retired member of the Standing Committee and deputy cabinet ministers, have been apprehended in Xi’s anti-corruption campaign. This shattered party groups and crippled possible opponents.
Xi is on course to become the first leader in a generation to choose his own successor, but he has not yet outlined potential contenders. The then-supreme leader Deng Xiaoping chose both Hu Jintao and his predecessor Jiang Zemin in the 1980s.
Banners condemning Xi and “zero COVID” were placed above a key Beijing road in an unusual protest preceding the congress. Images of the event were removed from social media platforms. The popular messaging service WeChat terminated accounts that transmitted messages.
Xi’s administration is also criticized for widespread detentions and other atrocities against primarily Muslim ethnic groups, as well as the imprisonment of government dissidents.