How Xi Jinping steamrolls dissent with tactics from Stalin and Mao

Chinese leader Xi Jinping is employing the sort of autocratic tactics once wielded by Joseph Stalin and Mao Zedong to stamp out opposition and stack the leadership with acolytes as he prepares to extend his reign.

- Chun Han Wong

In a throwback to the most powerful Communist leaders of the 20th century, Xi has purged dozens of senior officials—even his own protégés—overseen the growth of a cult of personality and demanded absolute loyalty.

His goal: dictate China’s destiny for years to come in order to expand the country’s power and match the U.S. in military might and economic clout. Now in his 14th year as party leader, the 73-year-old Xi has eliminated conventions put in place after Mao to prevent a return to one-man rule.

But such strongman tactics come with risks. In squelching debate and stoking a climate of fear, Xi has made policymaking more arbitrary and mistakes harder to correct. Without clear succession planning, Xi also risks the fate that befell Stalin and Mao, whose deaths in office unleashed struggles for power that ended up unraveling their political visions.

Culling the top

Stalin and Mao eliminated rivals and quashed dissent as they consolidated absolute power. Both leaders oversaw sweeping purges that condemned millions of officials, intellectuals and ordinary citizens to jail, forced labor and death. In launching the disastrous Cultural Revolution, Mao mobilized zealous youths to attack alleged counterrevolutionaries, unleashing mob violence and social turmoil.

While Xi has shunned such fanaticism, he has purged senior officials at a speed and scale unseen since the Mao era. Unending allegations of corruption and political dissent aim to compel officials to demonstrate loyalty to Xi and ensure that no one can undermine him.

Xi has stepped up the culling since starting his third term as party leader in 2022. He took down three sitting members of the elite Politburo in six months, the biggest purge at this level since 1976. China’s ministers for defense, foreign affairs and agriculture have been removed, along with other military commanders, regional leaders, financial regulators and state-enterprise executives.