Chairman Xi

The Chinese President is rapidly increasing his own powers, changing the country’s political landscape in ways that recall MAO’s years of dominance.

- Ananth Krishnan

Xi Jinping already holds more titles than perhaps any other world leader. He is general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC)—the title that is the real source of his power. He is the president of the People’s Republic, the face of China to the world. Xi also chairs the Central Military Commission, which heads the People’s Liberation Army (PLA). In April, he added a fourth title, “commander-in-chief” of the newly set up PLA joint command, to stamp his control over a military leadership that had refused to be tamed by his predecessors.

If his four titles are already a mouthful, Xi has now added a fifth jewel to his increasingly heavy crown. A key, behind-closed-doors meeting of the Communist Party—its last major meet before next year’s once-in-five years leadership congress—ended on October 27 by anointing him as the “core” of the party leadership. It’s only words, some might say. But in China’s politics, titles matter. Xi’s predecessor Hu Jintao was never bestowed with the title of “core” because the party was keen to stress its move towards “collective leadership” by the members of the elite Politburo Standing Committee (PBSC). Mao Zedong and Deng Xiaoping were core leaders, while Deng anointed his successor, Jiang Zemin, as the last after 1989, fearing the rise of another Mao.