General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party

{{Short description|Leader of the Chinese Communist Party}} {{Distinguish|Secretary-General of the Chinese Communist Party}} {{Use dmy dates|date=November 2023}} {{Use British English|date=November 2023}} {{Infobox Political post | post = General Secretary | body = the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party | native_name = {{nobold|{{lang|zh-hans|中国共产党中央委员会总书记}}}} | flag = Flag of the Chinese Communist Party.svg | flagsize = 125px | flagcaption = Flag of the Chinese Communist Party | insignia = Danghui.svg | insigniacaption = Emblem of the Chinese Communist Party | insigniasize = 100px | department = {{ubl | Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party | Secretariat of the Chinese Communist Party }} | image = Xi Jinping meets Keir Starmer Jan 2026.jpg | imagesize = 200px | incumbent = Xi Jinping | incumbentsince = 15 November 2012 | member_of = Politburo Standing Committee | status = National-level official<br>(highest ranking official / political chief) | type = {{plainlist| * Party and state leader * Paramount leader}} | style = {{plainlist| * General Secretary ({{lang|zh|总书记}})<br />{{small|(informal)}} * Comrade ({{lang|zh|同志}})<br />{{small|(formal)}} }} | residence = Qinzheng Hall, Zhongnanhai | nominator = Central Committee | appointer = Central Committee | termlength = Five years, renewable | reports_to = Central Committee | constituting_instrument = Party Constitution | seat = Beijing | precursor = Chairman (1943–1976) | inaugural = | formation = {{start date and age|df=yes|1921|7|23}} | unofficial_names = | deputy = | salary = | first = Chen Duxiu }} {{Infobox Chinese | title = General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party | s = 中国共产党中央委员会总书记 | t = 中國共產黨中央委員會總書記 | p = Zhōngguó Gòngchǎndǎng Zhōngyāng Wěiyuánhuì Zǒngshūjì | l = General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party | altname = Commonly abbreviated as | s2 = 中共中央总书记 | t2 = 中共中央總書記 | p2 = Zhōnggòng Zhōngyāng Zǒngshūjì | s3 = 总书记 | t3 = 總書記 | p3 = Zǒngshūjì | l3 = General Secretary | links = no | order = st }} {{Politics of China|expanded=Communist Party}}

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 general secretary has been the country's paramount leader. The general secretary has also been the political chief position of China (above the president and premier) since 1982.

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 Party National Congress in 1945, 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 Party National Congress in 1982 and replaced the CCP chairman as the highest leadership position of the CCP; Hu Yaobang was the first general secretary. Although the general secretary was the highest office in the CCP, though it did not become the most powerful post until Deng Xiaoping's retirement in 1989. 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).{{NoteTag|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.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-11-15/who-s-who-in-china-s-new-communist-party-leadership-lineup.html |title=Who's Who in China's New Communist Party Leadership Lineup |website=Bloomberg News |date=15 November 2012 |access-date=1 December 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141024034823/http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-11-15/who-s-who-in-china-s-new-communist-party-leadership-lineup.html |archive-date=24 October 2014 |url-status=live }}</ref>}}

According to the CCP constitution, the general secretary is elected during a plenary session of the Central Committee. The term of the office is the same of that as the Central Committee, which is five years, and there is no limit to the number of consecutive terms. 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. Additionally, the general secretary sets the agenda of the decision-making and coordinating bodies of the CCP Central Committee. At the National Congress, the general secretary delivers the political report. Although the CCP constitution is 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, the state, 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 superpower, the general secretary is considered to be one of the world's most powerful political figures.<ref>{{Cite news |last=McGregor |first=Richard |author-link=Richard McGregor |date=2022-08-21 |title=Xi Jinping's Radical Secrecy |language=en |website=The Atlantic |url=https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2022/08/china-xi-jinping-biography-opacity/671195/ |access-date=2022-09-12 |archive-date=21 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220821121717/https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2022/08/china-xi-jinping-biography-opacity/671195/ |url-status=live }}; {{Cite news |last=Sheridan |first=Michael |title=How Xi Jinping became the world's most powerful man |newspaper=The Times |url=https://www.thetimes.com/world/asia/article/xi-jinping-president-worlds-most-powerful-man-china-2snprgdm5 |access-date=2022-09-12 |issn=0140-0460 |archive-date=6 June 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240606000920/https://www.thetimes.com/world/asia/article/xi-jinping-president-worlds-most-powerful-man-china-2snprgdm5 |url-status=live }}; {{Cite news |last=O'Connor |first=Tom |date=2022-02-03 |title=Xi and Putin, two of world's most powerful men, to meet in China, US absent |website=Newsweek |url=https://www.newsweek.com/xi-putin-most-powerful-men-meet-china-us-absent-1675570 |access-date=2022-09-12 |archive-date=3 February 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220203211111/https://www.newsweek.com/xi-putin-most-powerful-men-meet-china-us-absent-1675570 |url-status=live }}</ref>

The incumbent general secretary of the CCP Central Committee is Xi Jinping, who was elected at the first plenary session of the 18th 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.<ref>{{Cite news |last1=Davidson|first1=Helen|last2=Graham-Harrison|first2=Emma|date=23 October 2022|title=China's leader Xi Jinping secures third term and stacks inner circle with loyalists|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/oct/23/xi-jinping-to-rule-china-for-precedent-breaking-third-term|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221023041913/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/oct/23/xi-jinping-to-rule-china-for-precedent-breaking-third-term|archive-date=23 October 2022|access-date=23 October 2022|work=The Guardian}}</ref>

== History == Following the founding of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) at its 1st National Congress in 1921, one of its original 13 delegates who attended ''in absentia'', Chen Duxiu,<ref name=":03">{{Cite book |last=Yoshihiro|first=Ishikawa|url=https://archive.org/details/formationofchine0000ishi|title=The Formation of the Chinese Communist Party|date=2012-01-31|publisher=Columbia University Press|isbn=978-0-231-50416-4|location=|doi=10.7312/ishi15808|jstor=10.7312/ishi15808|oclc=840119719}}</ref>{{Reference page|page=234}} held the title of secretary of the Central Bureau.<ref name=":3" /> In the 2nd National Congress in 1922, he became the chairman of the Central Executive Committee.<ref name="d972">{{cite book |author= |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IAg4AQAAIAAJ |title=中国共产党 |publisher=Renmin University |year=2008 |series=Selected Newspaper and Periodical Materials |page=139 |language=zh |access-date=2025-02-17 |issue=nos. 1-6|trans-title=Chinese Communist Party}}</ref> 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 encapsulate its experiences acquired during the First United Front. These changes included replacing the Chairman of the Central Executive Committee with General Secretary; Chen Duxiu was elected as General Secretary of the Central Committee and Director of the Central Organization Department.<ref name="n373">{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gim4AAAAIAAJ |title=中国共产党建设大辞典 |publisher=Sichuan People's Publishing House |year=1991 |isbn=978-7-220-01279-2 |page=617 |language=zh |trans-title=The Great Dictionary of the Construction of the Chinese Communist Party |access-date=2025-02-17 |archive-date=14 January 2026 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260114160836/https://books.google.com/books?id=gim4AAAAIAAJ |url-status=live }}</ref> According to the CCP constitution at the time, the general secretary's responsibility was to oversee all party affairs nationwide.<ref name=":3">{{Cite web |date=25 October 2017 |title=中共最高领导人为何称总书记？ |trans-title=Why is the top leader of the Chinese Communist Party called General Secretary? |url=https://www.chinanews.com.cn/gn/2017/10-25/8360345.shtml |access-date=2026-04-16 |website=China News Service|language=zh}}</ref>

Between 1928 and 1943, Xiang Zhongfa, Wang Ming, Bo Gu, Zhang Wentian and others successively served as general secretaries. 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.<ref>{{cite book |author= |title=任弼时年谱 |publisher=Central Literature Publishing House |year=2004 |isbn=9787507315967 |pages=487 |language=zh |trans-title=Ren Bishi's Chronology}}</ref>

On 1 September 1982, the CCP convened its 12th National 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.<ref name=":02">{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=y0gjAQAAMAAJ |title=中华人民共和国政治制度 |publisher=Shanghai People's Press |year=2005 |isbn=978-7-208-05566-7 |page=548 |language=zh |trans-title=Political system of the People's Republic of China |access-date=2025-02-17}}</ref> 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.<ref name="q411">{{cite book |author= |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IlzkAAAAMAAJ |title=中国共产党组织工作辞典 |publisher=党建读物出版社 |year=2001 |isbn=978-7-80098-415-0 |page=92 |language=zh |trans-title=Dictionary of Organizational Work of the Chinese Communist Party |access-date=2025-02-17 |archive-date=12 September 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250912035810/https://books.google.com/books?id=ILzkAAAAMAAJ |url-status=live }}</ref> The party's last chairman, Hu Yaobang, transferred to the post of General Secretary.<ref name="v547">{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JmVKAQAAIAAJ |title=中国共产党历次全国代表大会: 从一大到十七大 |publisher=Chinese Communist Party History Press |year=2008 |isbn=978-7-80199-854-5 |page=54 |language=zh |trans-title=The National Congresses of the Chinese Communist Party: From the First to the Seventeenth |access-date=2025-02-17}}</ref>

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 1993, starting with Jiang Zemin, the general secretary has traditionally also held the post of president. 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.<ref name=":0">{{cite news |last=Mai |first=Jun |date=8 May 2021 |title=Who leads the Communist Party? |url=https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3132631/chinas-communist-party-how-general-secretary-became-countrys |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231114095737/https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3132631/chinas-communist-party-how-general-secretary-became-countrys |archive-date=14 November 2023 |access-date=17 January 2023 |work=South China Morning Post |language=en |quote=}}</ref> The system of holding the three posts simultaneously has officially been referred to as the "three-in-one" leadership system ({{zh|s=“三位一体”领导体制|labels=no}}).<ref>{{Cite web |date=2 March 2018 |title="三位一体"领导体制是成功经验 |trans-title=The "three-in-one" leadership system is a successful experience. |url=http://www.npc.gov.cn/zgrdw/npc/lfzt/rlyw/2018-03/02/content_2040507.htm |access-date=2026-01-12 |website=National People's Congress |archive-date=25 May 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240525023149/http://www.npc.gov.cn/zgrdw/npc/lfzt/rlyw/2018-03/02/content_2040507.htm |url-status=live }}</ref>

== 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.<ref name=":0" /> However, as China is a one-party state under the CCP, the general secretary holds ultimate power and authority over the party and state,<ref>{{Cite news |last1=Buckley |first1=Chris |last2=Wu |first2=Adam |date=10 March 2018 |title=Ending Term Limits for China's Xi Is a Big Deal. Here's Why. |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/03/10/world/asia/china-xi-jinping-term-limit-explainer.html |url-status=live |access-date=1 December 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180312103512/https://www.nytimes.com/2018/03/10/world/asia/china-xi-jinping-term-limit-explainer.html |archive-date=12 March 2018 |quote=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.}}</ref> and is usually considered the "paramount leader" of China.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Hernández |first=Javier C. |date=25 October 2017 |title=China's 'Chairman of Everything': Behind Xi Jinping's Many Titles |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/25/world/asia/china-xi-jinping-titles-chairman.html |url-status=live |access-date=1 December 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171026043525/https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/25/world/asia/china-xi-jinping-titles-chairman.html |archive-date=26 October 2017 |quote=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.}}</ref> The general secretary has been the highest-ranking official in China's political system since 1982.<ref>{{cite news |title=国庆35周年阅兵 |url=http://www.81.cn/2015dyb/2015-08/19/content_6638244_4.htm |website=81.cn|publisher=People's Liberation Army|page=4 |date=2015-08-19 |accessdate=2015-08-19 |language=zh-cn |quote=9时40分，党和国家领导人胡耀邦 (CCP General Secretary Hu Yaobang)、邓小平 (CMC Chairman Deng Xiaoping)、赵紫阳 (Premier Zhao Ziyang)、李先念 (President Li Xiannian)、陈云 (Discipline Inspection Chief Chen Yun)、彭真、邓颖超、徐向前、聂荣臻、乌兰夫等，偕同全国各界人民代表和各国来宾，在雷鸣般的掌声中登上天安门城楼。|trans-title=35th National Day Parade}}</ref>{{NoteTag|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.}} According to the CCP constitution, the general secretary serves as an ''ex officio'' member of the Politburo Standing Committee.<ref>{{Cite web |last1=Evans |first1=James Gethyn |last2=Wang |first2=Yuanzhuo |date=17 October 2022 |title=Infographic: China's Leadership before the 20th Party Congress |url=https://fairbank.fas.harvard.edu/research/blog/infographic-chinas-leadership-before-the-20th-party-congress/ |access-date=2025-12-21 |website=Fairbank Center for Chinese Studies |language=en-US |archive-date=21 December 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20251221191103/https://fairbank.fas.harvard.edu/research/blog/infographic-chinas-leadership-before-the-20th-party-congress/ |url-status=live }}</ref> The location of the office of the general secretary is the Qinzheng Hall in Zhongnanhai, which also serves as the headquarters of the Secretariat.<ref>{{Cite web |date=27 July 2012 |title=文革后的中南海：中央办事效率最高的时期 |trans-title=Zhongnanhai after the Cultural Revolution: The period of highest efficiency in central government operations |url=http://marry.lywzc.com/thread-78936-1-1.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180208124159/http://marry.lywzc.com/thread-78936-1-1.html |archive-date=8 February 2018 |access-date=7 February 2018 |website=Fujian Public Security Bureau Network Security}}</ref>

=== Election and term of office === The CCP general secretary is officially elected by a plenary meeting of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party from among the members of the Politburo Standing Committee.<ref name=":2">{{Citation |last=Cabestan |first=Jean-Pierre |title=The Party runs the show |date=2017-08-18 |work=Routledge Handbook of the Chinese Communist Party |pages=75–91 |editor-last=Lam |editor-first=Willy Wo-Lap |editor-link=Willy Wo-Lap Lam |edition=1 |publisher=Routledge |language=en |doi=10.4324/9781315543918-5 |isbn=978-1-315-54391-8}}</ref> In practice, the ''de facto'' method of selecting the general secretary has varied over time.<ref name=":2" /> 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.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Ruwitch |first=John |date=2022-10-13 |title=China's major party congress is set to grant Xi Jinping a 3rd term. And that's not all |url=https://www.npr.org/2022/10/13/1124553497/china-communist-party-congress-xi-jinping |access-date=2025-12-21 |work=NPR |language=en |archive-date=14 October 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221014193045/https://www.npr.org/2022/10/13/1124553497/china-communist-party-congress-xi-jinping |url-status=live }}</ref>

=== Role and authority === 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 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.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Daum |first=Jeremy |date=2020-10-12 |title=Regulations on Work of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China |url=https://www.chinalawtranslate.com/en/centralcommitteeregulations/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240724174711/https://www.chinalawtranslate.com/en/centralcommitteeregulations/ |archive-date=24 July 2024 |access-date=2025-12-21 |work=China Law Translate |language=en-US |url-status=live }}</ref> 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 general secretary and the Central Committee.<ref>{{Cite news |date=2017-10-27 |title= |script-title=zh: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 |trans-title=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 |url=http://www.xinhuanet.com//politics/19cpcnc/2017-10/27/c_1121868508.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201109125251/http://www.xinhuanet.com/politics/19cpcnc/2017-10/27/c_1121868508.htm |archive-date=2020-11-09 |accessdate=2019-02-28 |website=Xinhua News Agency |language=zh}}</ref> 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.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |title=The National Congress of the Communist Party of China |url=https://www.strategictranslation.org/glossary/the-national-congress-of-the-communist-party-of-china |access-date=2025-02-14 |website=The Center for Strategic Translation |language=en |archive-date=2 July 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250702141749/https://www.strategictranslation.org/glossary/the-national-congress-of-the-communist-party-of-china |url-status=live }}</ref>

=== Protocol === 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.<ref>{{cite web |date=2017-11-25 |title=官媒新規定 須獨尊總書記 |trans-title=New regulations for official media: General Secretary must be respected |url=http://std.stheadline.com/daily/news-content.php?id=1703627&target=2 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190502000434/http://std.stheadline.com/daily/news-content.php?id=1703627&target=2 |archive-date=2019-05-02 |accessdate=2018-02-03 |website=Sing Tao Daily |publisher=}}</ref> 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.<ref>{{cite news |date=2017-11-25 |title=「八項規定」細則曝光 限總書記總理坐專機 |trans-title=Details of the "Eight Regulations" revealed: General Secretary and Premier are restricted from riding special planes |url=https://news.mingpao.com/pns/dailynews/web_tc/article/20171125/s00013/1511547303443 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171201041432/https://news.mingpao.com/pns/dailynews/web_tc/article/20171125/s00013/1511547303443 |archive-date=2017-12-01 |accessdate=2018-02-02 |work=Ming Pao |publisher=}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=《中央八项规定实施细则》全文 |trans-title=Full text of the "Implementation Rules of the Central Eight Regulations" |url=https://www.jsou.cn/jw/2017/1218/c198a54231/pagem.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210416224521/https://www.jsou.cn/jw/2017/1218/c198a54231/pagem.htm |archive-date=2021-04-16 |publisher=|website=Nanjing Open University}}</ref>

== See also == * Office of the General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party * Leader of the Chinese Communist Party * Order of precedence in China * Leadership core

== Notes == {{NoteFoot}}{{reflist|group=lower-alpha}}

== References == {{Reflist}}

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{{DEFAULTSORT:General Secretary Of The Communist Party Of China}} Category:General secretaries and Chairmen of the Chinese Communist Party Category:1921 establishments in China Category:Leaders of political parties in China Category:National-level official