Li Peng's son, Li Xiaopeng, appointed acting governor of Shanxi
Analysts say the former premier Li Peng played a key role in political lightweight Li Xiaopeng's rise to acting governor of Shanxi province
Li Xiaopeng, who only just scraped into alternate membership of the Communist Party's Central Committee last month, has been appointed acting governor of Shanxi province, a promotion widely seen as a result of the continued influence of his father, former premier Li Peng.
The appointment was decided upon by the standing committee of the provincial people's congress, state-run media reported yesterday.
Li is expected to be made governor at the annual meeting of the provincial party congress early next year. As governor of the northern, coal-producing province he would hold a rank equivalent to that of a minister.
Li Xiaopeng, 53, received the fewest votes among those elected alternate members of the party's Central Committee at the party's national congress last month. Unlike full members of the Central Committee, the alternates - numbering 171 - are traditionally ranked in accordance with the number of votes they manage to secure from the more than 2,200 party delegates.
His appointment triggered some satirical reaction online, with many saying his promotion was a result of the influece of his father, himself a princeling.
"It is definitely a result of his father's intervention," said Chen Ziming, a Beijing-based political affairs analyst.
Many bloggers said the promotion was symptomatic of the dynastic style of Chinese politics.