General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party

Not to be confused with Secretary-General of the Chinese Communist Party.

General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party
中国共产党中央委员会总书记
Emblem of the Chinese Communist Party
Flag of the Chinese Communist Party
Incumbent Xi Jinping since 15 November 2012
Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party Secretariat of the Chinese Communist Party
Style	General Secretary (总书记) (informal) Comrade (同志) (formal)
Type	Party and state leader Paramount leader
Status	National-level official (highest ranking official)
Member of	Politburo Standing Committee
Reports to	Central Committee
Residence	Qinzheng Hall, Zhongnanhai
Seat	Beijing
Nominator	Central Committee
Appointer	Central Committee
Term length	Five years, renewable
Constituting instrument	Party Constitution
Precursor	Chairman (1943–1976)
Formation	23 July 1921;104 years ago (1921-07-23)
First holder	Chen Duxiu

General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party
Simplified Chinese	中国共产党中央委员会总书记
Traditional Chinese	中國共產黨中央委員會總書記
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Zhōngguó Gòngchǎndǎng Zhōngyāng Wěiyuánhuì Zǒngshūjì

The general secretary of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party is the leader of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), the sole ruling party of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The general secretary leads the CCP Central Committee. Since 1989, the CCP general secretary has been the country's paramount leader.

The position of the general secretary of the Central Committee was established at the 4th Party National Congress in 1925, when Chen Duxiu, one of the founders of the CCP, was elected as the first General Secretary. After the 7th National Congress, the position was replaced by the Chairman of the Central Committee, which was held by Mao Zedong until his death in 1976. The post was re-established at the 12th National Congress in 1982 and replaced the Party Chairman as the highest leadership position of the CCP; Hu Yaobang was the first General Secretary. Since Jiang Zemin's leadership in the 1990s, the holder of the post has been, except for transitional periods, the president of China, making the holder the state representative, and the chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC), the supreme commander of the People's Liberation Army (PLA). ^{[note 1]}

According to the CCP constitution, the general secretary is elected during a plenary session of the Central Committee. The general secretary serves as an ex officio member of the Politburo Standing Committee (PSC), China's top decision-making body. The general secretary is also the head of the Secretariat, and sets the agenda of Central Committee, Politburo and PSC meetings. Although the CCP constitution is are vague on the powers of the general secretary, as the leader of the sole ruling party in the country, the position effectively grants the officeholder leadership and decision-making power in the Party, government, military, law, diplomacy, and ideology in China. As the leader of the world's largest economy by GDP purchasing power parity (PPP), the second largest economy by GDP nominal, the largest military in the world by personnel, a recognized nuclear weapons state, UN Security Council permanent member, and a great power, the general secretary is considered to be one of the world's most powerful political figures. ^[2]

The incumbent general secretary of the CCP Central Committee is Xi Jinping, who was elected at the first plenary Session of the 19th CCP Central Committee in on 15 November 2012, and re-elected twice at the first plenary session of the 19th CCP Central Committee 25 October 2017 and the first plenary session of the 20th CCP Central Committee on 23 October 2022. ^[3]

History

Following the establishment of the CCP, its inaugural leader, Chen Duxiu, held various positions including secretary of the Central Bureau, chairman of the Central Executive Committee (Chinese :中央执行委员会委员长), and general secretary of the Central Committee. ^[4] From 11 to 22 January 1925, the 4th National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party issued 11 resolutions, including modifications to the CCP constitution, to succinctly encapsulate the revolutionary experiences acquired during the First United Front. The Chairman of the Central Executive Committee was reappointed as General Secretary, and Chen Duxiu was elected as General Secretary of the Central Committee and Director of the Central Organization Department. ^[5]

Between 1928 and 1943, Xiang Zhongfa, Wang Ming, Bo Gu, Zhang Wentian and others successively served as General Secretaries of the CCP. At a Politburo meeting in March 1943, the Central Committee was reorganized and the position of Chairman of the Central Secretariat was established. Mao Zedong was elected Chairman of the Politburo and Chairman of the Central Secretariat, thus establishing his unified leadership. On 19 June 1945, the 7th Central Committee held its first plenary session where Mao was elected Chairman of the Central Committee at the meeting, abolishing the post of general secretary. ^[6]

On 1 September 1982, the CCP convened its 12th Congress, during which it resolved to amend the CCP constitution to eliminate the position of Chairman of the Central Committee, retaining only the role of General Secretary of the Central Committee. ^[7] It established that the responsibilities of the General Secretary would include convening meetings of the Politburo of the Central Committee and the Standing Committee of the Politburo, as well as presiding over the operations of the Central Committee Secretariat. ^[8] The party's last chairman, Hu Yaobang, transferred to the post of General Secretary. ^[9]

Since its revival in 1982, the post of general secretary has been the highest office in the CCP, though it did not become the most powerful post until Deng Xiaoping's retirement in 1989. Since the mid-1990s, starting with Jiang Zemin, the general secretary has traditionally also held the post of president of China. While the presidency is a ceremonial post, it is customary for the general secretary to assume the presidency to confirm his status as state representative. It has additionally been held together with the post of chairman of the Central Military Commission, making the holder the supreme commander of the People's Liberation Army. ^[10]

Election and term of office

The CCP general secretary is nominally elected by a plenary meeting of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party from among the members of the Politburo Standing Committee. ^[11] In practice, the de facto method of selecting the general secretary has varied over time. ^[11] According to the current CCP constitution, the term of office of the general secretary is the same as that of the Central Committee, which is five years. There is no limit to the number of consecutive terms, and theoretically, the officeholder can serve an unlimited number of terms. ^[12]

Powers and position

The powers and roles of the general secretary are vaguely defined, with no term limits or written rules for selecting a successor. ^[10] However, as China is a one-party state, the general secretary holds ultimate power and authority over state and government, ^[13] and is usually considered the "paramount leader" of China. ^[14] The general secretary has been the highest-ranking official in China's political system since 1982. ^{[note 2]} The location of the office of the general secretary is the Qinzheng Hall in Zhongnanhai, which also serves as the headquarters of the Secretariat. ^[15]

According to the CCP constitution, the general secretary serves as an ex officio member of the Politburo Standing Committee. ^[16] A Politburo meeting in October 2017 after the first plenary session of the 19th CCP Central Committee stipulated that all Politburo members must make an annual written presentation to the CCP General Secretary and the Central Committee. ^[17] At the opening of a CCP National Congress, the general secretary delivers the political report of the incumbent Central Committee, which details the work of the Central Committee in the last five years as well as the goals for the upcoming years. ^[18]

According to internal regulations, the general secretary is responsible for convening the meetings of the Politburo and the Politburo Standing Committee. The general secretary additionally presides over the work of the Secretariat. The general secretary also sets the topics of Central Committee, Politburo and Politburo Standing Committee meetings. Internal regulations state that decision-making and coordinating bodies of the CCP Central Committee can convene meetings to study, decide on, and coordinate major tasks in relevant fields based on the decisions of the Central Committee and the general secretary's instructions, with the agenda items for these meetings determined or approved by the general secretary. ^[19]

According to Hong Kong media reports, per the implementation rules of the Central Committee's Eight-point Regulation, the status of the general secretary is superior to that of other members of the Politburo Standing Committee, enjoying a number of special treatments, which highlight the position's supreme status. There is no limit on the length of news reports, live television broadcasts can be arranged, synchronized audio can be broadcast, and the number of accompanying reporters is not limited for the general secretary. ^[20] The general secretary can take a special plane when visiting foreign countries, and reports on foreign visits can be accompanied by side notes, features, and summaries, with no limit on the number of words. ^{[21] [22]}

List of general secretaries

See also: Leader of the Chinese Communist Party

1921–1943

Leader		Term
Portrait	Name (birth–death)	Start	End	Tenure	Central Committee
	Chen Duxiu 陈独秀 (1879–1942)	23 July 1921	7 August 1927 [a]	6 years and 15 days	1st (1921–1922) 2nd (1922–1923) 3rd (1923–1925) 4th (1925–1927) 5th (1927–1928)
	de facto Qu Qiubai 瞿秋白 (1899–1935)	7 August 1927	19 July 1928	347 days	5th (1927–1928)
	Xiang Zhongfa 向忠发 (1879–1931)	1 July 1928	24 June 1931 [b]	2 years and 358 days	6th (1928–1945)
	Acting Wang Ming 王明 (1904–1974)	24 June 1931	15 September 1931	83 days	6th (1928–1945)
	Bo Gu 博古 (1907–1946)	September 1931 [c]	17 January 1935	3 years, 4 months	6th (1928–1945)
	Zhang Wentian 张闻天 (1900–1976)	17 January 1935	20 March 1943	8 years and 62 days	6th (1928–1945)

Since 1982

Leader		Term
Portrait	Name (birth–death)	Start	End	Tenure	Central Committee
	Hu Yaobang 胡耀邦 (1915–1989)	12 September 1982	15 January 1987	4 years and 125 days	12th (1982–1987)
	Zhao Ziyang 赵紫阳 (1919–2005)	15 January 1987	24 June 1989	2 years and 159 days	12th (1982–1987) 13th (1987–1992)
	Jiang Zemin 江泽民 (1926–2022)	24 June 1989	15 November 2002	13 years and 144 days	13th (1987–1992) 14th (1992–1997) 15th (1997–2002)
	Hu Jintao 胡锦涛 (born 1942)	15 November 2002	15 November 2012	10 years	16th (2002–2007) 17th (2007–2012)
	Xi Jinping 习近平 (born 1953)	15 November 2012	Incumbent	13 years and 44 days	18th (2012–2017) 19th (2017–2022) 20th (2022–2027)

See also

• Office of the General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party
• Leadership core
• Order of precedence in China

Notes

1. Xi Jinping was named general secretary of the CCP and took over the chairmanship of the Central Military Commission from Hu Jintao in November 2012. ^[1]
2. The de facto leader Deng Xiaoping was 3rd ranking official in the 12th Politburo Standing Committee, and 2nd ranking official in the 13th Central Committee, after General Secretary Zhao Ziyang, but before President Yang Shangkun and Premier Li Peng. Deng at the time served as Chairman of the Central Military Commission and was ranked third or second overall in the leadership hierarchy.

1. Resigned July 1927, formally removed from office 7 August 1927.
2. Date executed by the Nationalist force.
3. Acting until 15 January 1934.

References

1. "Who's Who in China's New Communist Party Leadership Lineup". Bloomberg News . 15 November 2012. Archived from the original on 24 October 2014. Retrieved 1 December 2019.
2. McGregor, Richard (21 August 2022). "Xi Jinping's Radical Secrecy". The Atlantic . Archived from the original on 21 August 2022. Retrieved 12 September 2022.; Sheridan, Michael. "How Xi Jinping became the world's most powerful man". The Times . ISSN   0140-0460. Archived from the original on 6 June 2024. Retrieved 12 September 2022.; O'Connor, Tom (3 February 2022). "Xi and Putin, two of world's most powerful men, to meet in China, US absent". Newsweek . Archived from the original on 3 February 2022. Retrieved 12 September 2022.
3. Davidson, Helen; Graham-Harrison, Emma (23 October 2022). "China's leader Xi Jinping secures third term and stacks inner circle with loyalists". The Guardian . Archived from the original on 23 October 2022. Retrieved 23 October 2022.
4. 中国共产党. 报刊资料选汇 (in Chinese). 中国人民大学书报资料社. 2008. p. 139. Retrieved 17 February 2025.
5. 中国共产党建设大辞典 [The Great Dictionary of the Construction of the Chinese Communist Party] (in Chinese). 四川人民出版社. 1991. p. 617. ISBN   978-7-220-01279-2 . Retrieved 17 February 2025.
6. 任弼时年谱[Ren Bishi's Chronology] (in Chinese). Central Literature Publishing House. 2004. p. 487. ISBN   9787507315967.
7. 中华人民共和国政治制度 [Political system of the People's Republic of China] (in Chinese). Shanghai People's Press. 2005. p. 548. ISBN   978-7-208-05566-7 . Retrieved 17 February 2025.
8. 中国共产党组织工作辞典 [Dictionary of Organizational Work of the Chinese Communist Party] (in Chinese). 党建读物出版社. 2001. p. 92. ISBN   978-7-80098-415-0 . Retrieved 17 February 2025.
9. 中国共产党历次全国代表大会: 从一大到十七大 [The National Congresses of the Chinese Communist Party: From the First to the Seventeenth] (in Chinese). Chinese Communist Party History Press. 2008. p. 54. ISBN   978-7-80199-854-5 . Retrieved 17 February 2025.
10. Mai, Jun (8 May 2021). "Who leads the Communist Party?". South China Morning Post . Archived from the original on 14 November 2023. Retrieved 17 January 2023.
11. Cabestan, Jean-Pierre (18 August 2017), Lam, Willy Wo-Lap (ed.), "The Party runs the show", Routledge Handbook of the Chinese Communist Party (1 ed.), Routledge, pp. 75–91, doi:10.4324/9781315543918-5, ISBN   978-1-315-54391-8
12. Ruwitch, John (13 October 2022). "China's major party congress is set to grant Xi Jinping a 3rd term. And that's not all". NPR . Retrieved 21 December 2025.
13. Buckley, Chris; Wu, Adam (10 March 2018). "Ending Term Limits for China's Xi Is a Big Deal. Here's Why". The New York Times . Archived from the original on 12 March 2018. Retrieved 1 December 2019. In China, the political job that matters most is the general secretary of the Communist Party. The party controls the military and domestic security forces, and sets the policies that the government carries out. China's presidency lacks the authority of the American and French presidencies.
14. Hernández, Javier C. (25 October 2017). "China's 'Chairman of Everything': Behind Xi Jinping's Many Titles". The New York Times . Archived from the original on 26 October 2017. Retrieved 1 December 2019. Mr. Xi's most important title is general secretary, the most powerful position in the Communist Party. In China's one-party system, this ranking gives him virtually unchecked authority over the government.
15. "文革后的中南海：中央办事效率最高的时期" [Zhongnanhai after the Cultural Revolution: The period of highest efficiency in central government operations]. Fujian Public Security Bureau Network Security. 27 July 2012. Archived from the original on 8 February 2018. Retrieved 7 February 2018.
16. Evans, James Gethyn; Wang, Yuanzhuo (17 October 2022). "Infographic: China's Leadership before the 20th Party Congress". Fairbank Center for Chinese Studies . Retrieved 21 December 2025.
17. 中共中央政治局召开会议 研究部署学习宣传贯彻党的十九大精神 [The Political Bureau of the CCP Central Committee held a meeting to study, deploy, study, publicize and implement the spirit of the 19th National Congress of the Party]. Xinhua News Agency (in Chinese). 27 October 2017. Archived from the original on 9 November 2020. Retrieved 28 February 2019.
18. "The National Congress of the Communist Party of China". The Center for Strategic Translation. Retrieved 14 February 2025.
19. Daum, Jeremy (12 October 2020). "Regulations on Work of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China". China Law Translate. Archived from the original on 24 July 2024. Retrieved 21 December 2025.
20. "官媒新規定 須獨尊總書記" [New regulations for official media: General Secretary must be respected]. Sing Tao Daily . 25 November 2017. Archived from the original on 2 May 2019. Retrieved 3 February 2018.
21. "「八項規定」細則曝光 限總書記總理坐專機" [Details of the "Eight Regulations" revealed: General Secretary and Premier are restricted from riding special planes]. Ming Pao . 25 November 2017. Archived from the original on 1 December 2017. Retrieved 2 February 2018.
22. "《中央八项规定实施细则》全文" [Full text of the "Implementation Rules of the Central Eight Regulations"]. Nanjing Open University. Archived from the original on 16 April 2021.