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Former Shanghai Communist Party secretary Huang Ju is something of a mystery man - a low-profile leader who toes the party line.

In the words of a veteran Shanghai journalist, his strength is 'talking politics' and keeping his superiors happy.

Outgoing president Jiang Zemin will reportedly retire to Shanghai. Mr Huang has supervised the construction of a luxury housing complex for Mr Jiang, which has been dubbed 'the number one project' in Shanghai.

Mr Huang trod a long path to become a top candidate for executive deputy premier, replacing another Jiang ally, Li Lanqing. Mr Huang has been tipped as a top candidate for central government posts for the past five years.

Mr Huang's promotion will help put to rest rumours that personal problems have slowed his promotion to the top.

His rise is proof that the Shanghai faction of natives or former officials, led by Mr Jiang, will continue to dominate the new leadership.

Mr Huang, a former engineer, replaced Premier Zhu Rongji as mayor of Shanghai in 1991 and Mr Zhu replaced President Jiang Zemin as Shanghai party secretary.

As mayor from 1991-95, Mr Huang oversaw the rise of Shanghai from a dilapidated city to a centre of gleaming skyscrapers linked by massive infrastructure works.

The city has hosted high-profile international conferences including last year's Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation leaders' summit and is bidding for the right to hold the World Expo in 2010.

But he never achieved the popularity of the mayor who followed him, Xu Kuangdi, the former professor who has been highly popular with the foreign business community as he speaks fluent English.

In his eight years as Shanghai's party secretary, Mr Huang has kept a low profile, meeting occasionally with foreign delegations and making statements through state-controlled media.

His published remarks emphasise the need to find jobs for laid-off workers and build clean government, in-line with party policies. Mr Huang also has billed himself as the 'green' party secretary, with Shanghai planting trees and expanding parks under his reign.

If Mr Huang knows how to talk politics, he also knows how to play politics. Former mayor Mr Xu stepped down last year to head the Chinese Academy of Engineering in Beijing amid rumours of conflicts between the two men.

Gong Xueping, a former Shanghai deputy party secretary, left his post this year trailed by similar speculation that he had stolen the thunder from his boss.

The 64-year-old Mr Huang rose through Shanghai's state industry and later the party apparatus. Born in Zhejiang near Shanghai, he studied electrical engineering at the prestigious Tsinghua University in Beijing. He is also a veteran party member who joined the party 36 years ago.

He worked at several Shanghai factories in the machinery, metallurgical and petrochemical industries before becoming deputy chief of the city's bureau of electrical industry in 1982.

That led to higher party positions and the vice-mayor's post in 1986, where he served under Mr Jiang and Mr Zhu.

At a news briefing to announce his reappointment as party secretary in May, Mr Huang joked about his age.

But the dapper man with grey-flecked hair and a dark suit impressed the audience by reeling off the ages of the officials who would serve with him. Even official media refers to the strength of his memory and his ability to recall phone numbers.

Less is known about his personal life. Mr Huang was said to have a good tenor voice and liked to sing folk songs in Chinese and Russian.

Despite living the cloistered life of a party secretary, he is not free from foreign influences, having travelled to more than 10 countries on official trips.

His daughter, Huang Fan, is rumoured to be studying in the United States.

Earlier in his political career, Mr Huang explained his name and modestly described himself as a shrinking violet.

'I was born in the autumn, when chrysanthemums start to flower and that is why I was given the name Huang Ju - yellow chrysanthemum,' he was quoted by state media as saying.

'I don't regard myself as a flower, but rather a green leaf that exists to make the flower more beautiful.'

1938: Born in Zhejiang province

1963: Graduated from the prestigious Tsinghua University in Beijing

1966: Joined the Communist Party

1982: Was appointed as deputy director of the Shanghai Electrical Machinery Bureau

1983: Became a member of the Shanghai party committee

1985: Shanghai deputy party secretary

1986: Shanghai vice-mayor

1991: Appointed as Shanghai mayor

1994: Member of Politburo and Shanghai party secretary



Huang Ju: Following the footsteps of Shanghai leaders