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Exclusive | Bigger-than-expected changes loom as Xi Jinping shapes China’s top leadership at 20th Communist Party congress
- As many as four top positions on the Politburo Standing Committee could change hands and nearly half the Central Committee is expected to be replaced
- In Chinese politics, important decisions are often made behind closed doors before being communicated and endorsed at the formal meeting
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President Xi Jinping is firmly in control of China’s twice-a-decade leadership reshuffle, which could see bigger-than-expected changes as he builds a new supporting team for his unprecedented third term.
As many as four top positions on the Politburo Standing Committee could change hands and nearly half the Central Committee will be replaced, the South China Morning Post has learned.
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Xi Jinping charts China’s future course at 20th party congress
Xi Jinping charts China’s future course at 20th party congress
The results will be made public this coming weekend at the end of the week-long 20th Communist Party congress. On October 22, the party will form a new Central Committee to head 97 million party members. The next day, the Central Committee will hold its first full session to endorse the line-up of the 25-member Politburo and the seven-member Politburo Standing Committee – the highest decision-making body.
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In Chinese politics, important decisions are often made behind closed doors before the formal meeting, which serves as an occasion for communication and formal endorsement.
As expected, Xi is set to confirm an unprecedented third term as the party chief. He will take the opportunity to bring fresh blood to the top, with four of the seven members of the Politburo Standing Committee, which Xi heads, likely to retire.
National People’s Congress chairman Li Zhanshu, 72, and Vice-Premier Han Zheng, 68, are widely tipped to leave, having reached the unofficial retirement age of 68.
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