Officials from the financial capital remain a force despite moves to sideline the city
When an article praising Shanghai appeared in People's Daily just a few weeks before the Communist Party congress, it sparked speculation. Had a resurgent 'Shanghai Gang' hijacked the front page of the party mouthpiece, or was it just an affirmation of the work of the city's new leader?
With Shanghai's new party secretary, Xi Jinping , expected to be promoted at the meeting, the article (Glad to Hear Good Tidings from Shanghai) appeared to be directed at praising him and showing the city's support of the centre.
This was in direct contrast to Shanghai's former party secretary, Chen Liangyu , who was sacked for corruption after he defied President Hu Jintao over policy. Chen's ousting removed a key member of the Shanghai faction of current and former leaders from the city, which shares power with the current administration.
The Shanghai Gang might be down, but it is not out, political analysts say. It remains a force within the party and the central government. But Mr Hu is expected to elevate his allies and members of his own faction from the Communist Youth League at next week's congress.
'While the fall of Chen Liangyu was a major blow, this political faction has nonetheless largely survived, with almost all of the other prominent members for the network remaining in positions of power,' Cheng Li, a professor of government at Hamilton College in New York state and a fellow at the Brookings Institution, wrote in the China Leadership Monitor earlier this year.