Chen Miner, 57
Worked under Xi and
was once considered
a likely heir. His omission gives Xi
more time to mull successors.49
Politburo The Committee to Rule China
Wang Yang, 62
He missed the cut
for the Standing
Committee in 2012, the year
his effort to peacefully end the
pro-democracy protests in the
fishing village of Wukan earned
him international recognition. He
has risen to power in an unusually
public debate about China’s
economy. Wang backed a liberal
package of policies called the
“Guangdong model” that allow
a greater role for nonprofits and
trade unions. That’s in contrast
with the “Chongqing model,” which
emphasizes the role of the state.
Xi Jinping, 64
The party congress
was Xi’s crowning
moment. The
enshrinement of his name in the
party’s charter capped a decades-
long journey from being forced
to live in the countryside under
Mao Zedong to becoming a leader
on par with him. His changes to the
party’s governing documents and
the lack of a clear heir apparent
position him to rule China, perhaps
even beyond the new five-year term. Wang Huning, 62
Seen as China’s top
political theorist and
foreign policy guru, Wang has
advised three presidents and
helped draft the socio- political
theory that drew entrepreneurs,
capitalists, and intellectuals under
the party’s umbrella. His ascent
dovetails with Xi’s increased
emphasis on communist ideology.Han Zheng, 63
As mayor of Shanghai,
Han led a $44 billion
infrastructure makeover for the
2010 Shanghai Expo and has
guided its transformation into one
of Asia’s most modern cities.Li Keqiang, 62
Once seen as a con-
tender for the presi-
dency, Li watched Xi
win the top job and instead became
premier, supervising the daily affairs
of the government. The job was a
natural fit for Li, who holds a doc-
torate in economics and was former
Premier Wen Jiabao’s top lieutenant.Zhao Leji, 60
For the past five
years, Zhao has
led the power ful Organization
Department, which holds sway over
appointments to senior jobs across
the country, including provinces
and central party agencies. Before
that, he spent almost 30 years
climbing the ranks in Qinghai, a
northwestern province where he
became China’s youngest regional
leader and oversaw the doubling of
Qinghai’s economy in seven years.Li Zhanshu, 67
Li is among a group
of top officials who
accompany Xi on
diplomatic visits. He’s also become
Xi’s personal liaison to Russian
President Vladimir Putin. Before
becoming Xi’s chief of staff in 2012,
Li toiled for decades in rural obscu-
rity. He wrote poetry and held jobs
in places such as China’s ancient
heartland of Shaanxi and the rust-
belt province of Heilongjiang. His
ties with Xi stretch back to the
1980s, when they served in adjacent
counties in the province of Hebei.Wang Qishan, 69
Sticking to party norms
on retirement age, Xi’s
antigraft chief leaves China’s top
leadership body.
Hu Chunhua, 54
Politburo’s youngest
member and head of
economic powerhouse Guangdong;
his youth was once seen as an asset.On Oct. 25, President Xi Jinping walked onto the red carpet of China’s Great Hall of the People having amassed more
power than any leader in a generation. Behind him—in order of rank—were Premier Li Keqiang and the other five
members of the Politburo Standing Committee, the panel that meets weekly to manage the affairs of almost one-fifth
of the world’s population. The new lineup, chosen after the Communist Party’s twice-a-decade congress, surrounds
Xi with proven loyalists who will help advance his plans to shore up one-party rule and complete China’s reemergence
as a great power. Here’s a look at the officials who will run China for the next five years—and three significant omissions.
Didn’t make the cut