China: CPC elects delegates for Cong as Jinping poised for 3rd term as prez

President Xi Jinping (69) himself was ‘elected’ as a delegate to the Congress in April this year

BEIJING: The countdown for next month's key Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) began as the ruling party on Sunday announced that all delegates totalling nearly 2,300 were "elected" for the once-ina-five year meeting in which President Xi Jinping is widely expected to get endorsed for a record third term. A total of 2,296 delegates were "elected" to attend the upcoming 20th National Congress of the CPC to be held on October 16, official media reported, citing a statement by the party here.

Scotching rumours and speculation over tensions within the ruling party over Xi's continuation for an unprecedented third term, the statement said that the delegates were elected under the guidance of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, and in accordance with the Party's Constitution, adopting methods required by the CPC Central Committee.

Xi, 69, himself was "elected" as a delegate to the Congress in April this year, according to the party's earlier announcement.

The process upheld the Party's nature and purpose, adhered to and enhanced the Party's overall leadership, and fully embodied intra-party democracy, the statement said.