President of the People's Republic of China

President of the People's Republic of China
中华人民共和国主席
Incumbent
Xi Jinping
since 14 March 2013
Style Mr. President (主席)
(formal)
His Excellency (阁下)
(in international correspondence)
Status Head of state
Residence Zhongnanhai
Seat West Building, Zhongnanhai, Beijing (de jure)
Nominator the Presidium of the National People's Congress
Appointer the National People's Congress
Term length Five years, renewable
Constituting instrument Constitution of the People's Republic of China
Inaugural holder Mao Zedong
as Chairman under
the 1954 Constitution
Li Xiannian
as President under
the 1982 Constitution
Formation 27 September 1954
18 June 1983
Abolished January 1975 – December 1982
Deputy Vice President
Website Presidency
President of the People's Republic of China
Simplified Chinese 中华人民共和国主席
Traditional Chinese 中華人民共和國主席
Literal meaning Chinese People Republic Chairperson
Alternative Chinese name
Simplified Chinese 国家主席
Traditional Chinese 國家主席
Literal meaning State Chairperson
This article is part of a series on the
Politics of China
Presidency

The President of the People's Republic of China is the head of state of the People's Republic of China. Under the country's constitution, the presidency is a largely ceremonial office with limited powers.[1][2] However, since 1993, as a matter of convention, the presidency has been held simultaneously by the General Secretary of the Communist Party of China,[3] the top leader in the one party system.[lower-alpha 1][4] The office is officially regarded as an institution of the state rather than an administrative post; theoretically, the President serves at the pleasure of the National People's Congress, the legislature, and is not legally vested to take executive action on its own prerogative.[lower-alpha 2] The current President is Xi Jinping, who took office in March 2013.[lower-alpha 3]

Since 1993, apart from brief periods of transition, the top leader of China simultaneously serves as the President, the leader of the party, and the commander-in-chief of the military (as Chairman of the Central Military Commission). This individual then carries out different duties under separate titles. For example, the leader meets foreign dignitaries and receives ambassadors in his capacity as President, issues military directives as Chairman of the Central Military Commission, and upholds party rule through the office of General Secretary.

The office was first established in the Constitution of the People's Republic of China in 1954 and successively held by Mao Zedong and Liu Shaoqi. Liu fell into political disgrace during the Cultural Revolution, after which the office became vacant. The office was abolished under the Constitution of 1975, then reinstated in the Constitution of 1982, but with reduced powers. The official English-language translation of the title was "Chairman"; after 1982, this translation was changed to "President", although the Chinese title remains unchanged.[lower-alpha 4] Therefore the title "President" in this case does not mean the same as in the United States or other Presidential systems, but rather as an approximation in terms of its power compared with parliamentary systems.

Between 1982 and 2018, the constitution stipulated that the president could not serve more than two consecutive terms.[2] During the Mao era and also since 2018, there were no term limits attached to this office.[5]

Qualifications and election

According to the current Constitution of the People's Republic of China, the President must be a Chinese citizen with full electoral rights who has reached the age of 45.

The President is elected by the National People's Congress (NPC), China's highest state body, which also has the power to remove the President and other state officers from office. Elections and removals are decided by a simple majority vote.[6]

According to the Organic Law of the NPC, the President is nominated by the NPC Presidium, the Congress's executive organ.[7] In practice, however, the ruling Communist Party of China reserves the post of President for its current General Secretary. Like all officers of state elected by the NPC, the President is elected from a one name ballot.

In the event that the office of President falls vacant, the Vice-President succeeds to the office. In the event that both offices fall vacant, the Chairman of the NPC Standing Committee temporarily acts as President until the NPC can elect a new President and Vice-President.[8]

Prior to March 2018, the President and Vice President were limited to two consecutive terms. However these limits were removed at the 2018 National People's Congress.[9]

Powers and duties

Under the current constitution, instated in 1982 with minor revisions in later years, the President has the power to promulgate laws, select and dismiss the Premier (prime minister) as well as the ministers of the State Council, grant presidential pardons, declares a state of emergency, issue mass mobilization orders, and issue state honours. In addition, the President names and dismisses ambassadors to foreign countries, signs and annuls treaties with foreign entities. According to the Constitution, all of these powers require the approval or confirmation of the National People's Congress. The President also conducts state visits on behalf of the People's Republic. Under the constitution the "state visit" clause is the only presidential power that does not stipulate any form of oversight from the National People's Congress. As the vast majority of presidential powers are dependent on the ratification of the NPC, the President is, in essence, a symbolic post without any direct say in the governance of state. It is therefore conceived to mainly function as an symbolic institution of the state rather than an office with true executive powers.[10]

In theory, the President has discretion over the selection of the Premier, though in practice the Premier has historically been selected through the top-level discussions of the Communist Party of China. Upon the nomination of the Premier, the NPC convenes to confirm the nomination, but since only one name is on the ballot, it can only approve or reject. To date, it has never rejected a personnel nomination.[11] Since the Premier, the head of government in China, is the most important political appointment in the Chinese government, the nomination power, under some circumstances, may give the President real political influence.[12]

Political ranking

For President Liu Shaoqi, he was also the first Vice Chairman of the Communist Party of China, ranked second in the Communist Party of China, behind Chairman Mao Zedong.[13] For President Li Xiannian, he was also the 5th ranked member of the Politburo Standing Committee, after CPC General Secretary and Premier.[14] For President Yang Shangkun, he was not a member of Politburo Standing Committee, but he ranked third after General Secretary Zhao Ziyang and Deng Xiaoping.[15] Since Jiang Zemin, the President is also the General Secretary of the Communist Party of China, ranking first in Party and State.[16]

History

Establishment in 1954

The office of State Chairman (the original English translation, as noted above) was first established under China's 1954 Constitution. The ceremonial powers of the office were largely identical to those in the current Constitution.[17]

The powers of the 1954 office differed from those of the current office in two areas: military and governmental. The State Chairman's military powers were defined in the 1954 Constitution as follows: "The Chairman of the People's Republic of China commands the armed forces of the state, and is Chairman of the National Defence Council (Chinese: 国防委员会)."[18] The National Defence Council was unique to the 1954 Constitution, and was mandated as the civil command for the People's Liberation Army. It was abolished under the 1975 Constitution.

The State Chairman's governmental powers were defined in the 1954 Constitution as follows: "The Chairman of the People's Republic of China, whenever necessary, convenes a Supreme State Conference (Chinese: 最高国务会议) and acts as its chairman." The members of the Supreme State Conference included the main officers of state, and its views were to be presented to the main organs of state and government, including the National People's Congress and the State and National Defense Councils.[19] The Supreme State Conference was also unique to the 1954 Constitution. It was abolished under the 1975 Constitution and later Constitutions have not included a similar body.

History up to 1974

Mao Zedong was the first to hold the office of State Chairman. He was elected at the founding session of the National People's Congress in 1955. At the 2nd NPC in 1959, Mao was succeeded by Liu Shaoqi, first Vice Chairman of the Communist Party. Liu was reelected as State Chairman at the 3rd NPC in Jan 1965. However, in 1966, Mao launched the Cultural Revolution and by August 1966 Mao and his supporters succeeding in removing Liu from his position as party Vice Chairman. A few months later Liu was apparently placed under house arrest, and after a prolonged power struggle the 12th Plenum of the 8th Communist Party Congress stripped Liu Shaoqi of all his party and non-party positions on October 31, 1968, including the post of State Chairman. This was in violation of the Constitution, which required a vote by the NPC to remove the State Chairman.

After Liu's removal in 1968, the office of State Chairman was vacant. From 1972 to 1975, however, state media referred to Vice State Chairman Dong Biwu as "acting State Chairman."

Abolition in 1975

When the 4th NPC was convened in 1975, its main act was to adopt a new Constitution which eliminated the office of State Chairman and emphasized instead the leadership of the Communist Party over the state, including an article that made the Party Chairman Supreme Commander of the PLA in concurrence as Chairman of the Party CMC.[20] The 5th NPC was convened two years early, in 1978, and a third Constitution was adopted, which also lacked the office of State Chairman. The office was finally reinstated in the fourth Constitution, adopted by the 5th Session of the 5th NPC in 1982. The title of the office (guojia zhuxi) was unchanged in the Chinese text, but a new English translation of "President of the People's Republic of China" was adopted.

Restoration in 1982

In the 1982 Constitution, the President was conceived of as a figurehead of state with actual state power resting in the hands of the General Secretary of the Communist Party, Premier of the State Council and the Chairman of the Central Military Commission, and all four posts were designed to be held by separate people. The President therefore held minor responsibilities such as greeting foreign dignitaries and signing the appointment of embassy staff, and did not intervene in the affairs of the State Council or the Party. In the original 1982 Constitution plan, the Party would develop policy, the state would execute it, and the power would be divided to prevent a cult of personality from forming as it did with the case of Mao Zedong. Thus in 1982, China perceivably had four main leaders: Hu Yaobang, the Party General Secretary; Zhao Ziyang, the Premier; Li Xiannian, the President; and Deng Xiaoping, the "Paramount Leader", holding title of the Chairman of the Central Military Commission and was overall commander-in-chief of the armed forces. The current political structure of Vietnam is similar to the structure China followed in the 1980s.

In the 1990s, the experiment of separating party and state posts, which led to conflict during the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989, was terminated. In 1993, the post of President was taken by Jiang Zemin, who as General Secretary of the Communist Party and Chairman of the Central Military Commission, became the undisputed top leader of the party and the state. When Jiang Zemin stepped down in 2003, the offices of General Secretary and President were once again both given to one man, then Vice-President Hu Jintao, the first Vice President to assume the office. In turn, Hu vacated both offices for Xi Jinping in 2012 and 2013. Under Xi, the term limits for the President were removed.[9] This was widely interpreted as part of an expansion of Xi's power, effectively extending his tenure as China's paramount leader indefinitely.[9] Xi explained the decision in terms of needing to align two more powerful posts — General Secretary of the Communist Party and Chairman of the Central Military Commission which are no term limits.[21]

List of heads of state

Timeline

 
↓P. of C.Gov
↓President of China
↓Acting Presidents
↓
↓Honorary President
↓Restored
│
1949.83
│
1959.83
│
1969.83
│
1979.83
│
1989.83
│
1999.83
│
2009.83

Chairmen/presidents

Other heads of state

Statistics

# President Date of birth Age at ascension
(first term)		 Time in office
(total)		 Age at retirement
(last term)		 Date of death Longevity
1 Mao Zedong December 26, 1893 60 years, 275 days 4 years, 212 days 64 years, 122 days September 9, 1976 82 years, 258 days
2 Liu Shaoqi November 24, 1898 60 years, 154 days 9 years, 187 days 69 years, 342 days November 12, 1969 70 years, 353 days
Presidency vacant
acting Dong Biwu March 5, 1886 85 years, 356 days 2 years, 327 days 88 years, 318 days April 2, 1975 89 years, 28 days
acting Soong Ching-ling January 27, 1893 83 years, 161 days 1 years, 242 days 85 years, 37 days May 29, 1981 88 years, 122 days
Presidency abolished
3 Li Xiannian June 23, 1909 73 years, 360 days 4 years, 295 days 78 years, 290 days June 21, 1992 82 years, 364 days
4 Yang Shangkun August 3, 1907 80 years, 250 days 4 years, 352 days 85 years, 236 days September 14, 1998 91 years, 42 days
5 Jiang Zemin August 17, 1926 66 years, 222 days 9 years, 353 days 76 years, 210 days Living 92 years, 63 days (Living)
6 Hu Jintao December 21, 1942 60 years, 84 days 10 years, 0 days 70 years, 84 days Living 75 years, 302 days (Living)
7 Xi Jinping June 15, 1953 59 years, 272 days 5 years, 219 days (Ongoing) Incumbent Living 65 years, 126 days (Living)

Living former presidents

There are two living former presidents:

President's spouse

Since the first president, seven had a spouse during term of office.

№ Spouse President Tenure
1 Jiang Qing Mao Zedong 1 October 1949 – 27 April 1959
2 Wang Guangmei Liu Shaoqi 27 April 1959 – 31 October 1968
3 Lin Jiamei Li Xiannian 18 June 1983 – 8 April 1988
4 Li Bozhao Yang Shangkun 8 April 1988 – 27 March 1993
5 Wang Yeping Jiang Zemin 27 March 1993 – 15 March 2003
6 Liu Yongqing Hu Jintao 15 March 2003 – 14 March 2013
7 Peng Liyuan Xi Jinping 14 March 2013 – Incumbent

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ "Xi's here to stay: China leader tipped to outstay term". Daily Mail. 2016-08-09. "A lot of analysts now see it as a given" that Xi will seek to stay party general secretary, the country's most powerful post, said Christopher K. Johnson, a former CIA analyst and now China specialist at the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies.
  2. ↑ It is listed as such in the current Constitution; it is thus equivalent to organs such as the State Council, rather than to offices such as that of the Premier.
  3. ↑ "Does Chinese leader Xi Jinping plan to hang on to power for more than 10 years?". 6 October 2017. If Xi relinquished the presidency in 2023 but remained party chief and chairman of the Central Military commission (CMC), his successor as president would be nothing more than a symbolic figure... “Once the president is neither the party’s general secretary nor the CMC chairman, he or she will be hollowed out, just like a body without a soul.”
  4. ↑ In Chinese the President of the PRC is termed zhǔxí while the Presidents of other countries are termed zǒngtǒng. Furthermore zhǔxí continues to have the meaning of "chairman" in a generic context.

References

  1. ↑ Chris Buckley and Adam Wu (10 March 2018). "Ending Term Limits for China's Xi Is a Big Deal. Here's Why. - Is the presidency powerful in China?". New York Times. 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.
  2. 1 2 Krishna Kanta Handique State Open University, EXECUTIVE: THE PRESIDENT OF THE CHINESE REPUBLIC.
  3. ↑ "A simple guide to the Chinese government". South China Morning Post. Xi Jinping is the most powerful figure in the Chinese political system. He is the President of China, but his real influence comes from his position as the General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party.
  4. ↑ "China sets stage for Xi to stay in office indefinitely". Reuters. 2018-02-25. However, the role of party chief is more senior than that of president. At some point, Xi could be given a party position that also enables him to stay on as long as he likes.
  5. ↑ "CPC proposes change on Chinese president's term in Constitution - Xinhua - English.news.cn". www.xinhuanet.com.
  6. ↑ Constitution of the People's Republic of China, Articles 62, 63.
  7. ↑ "Organic Law of the National People's Congress of the PRC". Retrieved 2013-07-03. , Article 13.
  8. ↑ Constitution of the People's Republic of China, Article 84.
  9. 1 2 3 "China approves 'president for life' change". BBC News. 11 March 2018. Retrieved 11 March 2018.
  10. ↑ Constitution of the People's Republic of China, Article 62, Section 5. The NPC does no itself have the power to nominate the Premier.
  11. ↑ Yew, Chiew Ping; Gang Chen (2010-03-13). China's National People's Congress 2010: Addressing Challenges With No Breakthrough in Legislative Assertiveness (PDF). Background Brief. Singapore: East Asian Institute. Retrieved 2013-07-03.
  12. ↑ Weng, Byron (September 1982). "Some Key Aspects of the 1982 Draft Constitution of the People's Republic of China". The China Quarterly (91): 492–506. JSTOR 653370.
  13. ↑ Mathews, Jay (4 March 1980). "5 Children of Liu Shaoqi Detail Years in Disfavor". Washington Post. Retrieved 12 March 2018.
  14. ↑ "Li Xiannian: China's new president". UPI. 18 June 1983. Retrieved 12 March 2018.
  15. ↑ Del Vecchio, Mark S. "Yang Shangkun elected Chinese president". UPI. Retrieved 12 March 2018.
  16. ↑ "Jiang Zemin to have lower rank in Communist party". The Telegraph. 2013. Retrieved 12 March 2018.
  17. ↑ Constitution of the People's Republic of China, 1954, Articles 40–42.
  18. ↑ Constitution of the People's Republic of China, Article 43.
  19. ↑ Constitution of the People's Republic of China, Article 44.
  20. ↑ Cohen, Jerome Alan (1978-12-01). "China's Changing Constitution". The China Quarterly (76): 794–841. ISSN 0305-7410. JSTOR 652647.
  21. ↑ Mitchell, Tom. "China's Xi Jinping says he is opposed to life-long rule". Financial Times. Retrieved 17 April 2018. President insists term extension is necessary to align government and party posts
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