Heilongjiang governor Lu Hao heads 'next generation' of leadership
Achievements of Heilongjiang governor Lu Hao trumpeted in move seen by analysts as start of propaganda campaign for the next leadership
The overseas edition of People's Daily ran a prominent profile of rising political star Lu Hao yesterday, with analysts saying it was part of a propaganda campaign ahead of his elevation to the next generation of party leadership.
They said the article extolling the talents and capabilities of the 46-year-old Heilongjiang governor - the youngest provincial governor - signalled the beginning of the nurturing of a new generation of leaders.
It comes just months after the installation of the fifth-generation leadership at the party's 18th congress in November.
Lu was elected to the party's 205-member decision-making Central Committee at the congress and was appointed Heilongjiang's governor in March.
He is one of the young leaders, born in the 1960s, who are seen as likely to make up the core of the party's sixth-generation leadership, which will succeed the fifth-generation led by President Xi Jinping in less than 10 years.
Chen Ziming , a Beijing-based political affairs analyst, said it was part of a propaganda campaign "designed to promote the young leader in preparation for elevating him to the core at the next party congress" in 2017.