Xi Jinping–Li Keqiang Administration

Politburo Standing Committee

Presidency

National People's Congress and Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference leaders

Main articles: 12th National People's Congress, 13th National People's Congress, and Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference

The State Council

History and Development

Formation

From 2012 to 2013, China's top leadership transitioned from the "fourth generation" under Hu Jintao to the "fifth generation" led by Xi Jinping. On 15 November 2012, at the First Plenary Session of the 18th Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), Xi Jinping and Li Keqiang were elected to the Politburo Standing Committee of the CCP, ranking first and second respectively. Xi succeeded Hu Jintao as General Secretary of the CCP and Chairman of the Central Military Commission. This pairing was widely regarded as marking the start of the Xi–Li Administration.

The 18th Politburo Standing Committee was reduced from nine to seven members. Apart from Xi and Li, the other five members in order of rank were Zhang Dejiang, Yu Zhengsheng, Liu Yunshan, Wang Qishan, and Zhang Gaoli. Xi and Li were also the first CCP General Secretary and Premier of the State Council, respectively, to have been born after the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949.

On 14 March 2013, at the fourth plenary meeting of the First Session of the 12th National People's Congress, Xi Jinping was elected President of the PRC and Chairman of the Central Military Commission. Li Keqiang succeeded Wen Jiabao as Premier of the State Council. In December 2013 and January 2014, Xi and Li assumed the positions of head and deputy head, respectively, of the newly established Central Leading Group for Comprehensively Deepening Reforms and the National Security Commission.

At the 19th National Congress of the CCP in October 2017, both Xi Jinping and Li Keqiang were re-elected to the Central Committee with full votes, and were subsequently reappointed to the Politburo Standing Committee at the First Plenary Session of the 19th Central Committee, maintaining their positions as the top two members in party hierarchy.

Xi-Li New Policies

At the beginning of their terms, both domestically and internationally, the administration was sometimes referred to as the Xi–Li New Policies, analysts observed that Chinese society was approaching a critical historical juncture, and Xi and Li used several high-profile appearances to signal policy priorities and outline reform directions. These included moving away from a GDP-centered development model, reforming institutions to combat corruption, and transitioning from an "economic construction-oriented government" toward a "public service-oriented government". Early in his tenure, Li Keqiang promoted the slogan "Reform is China's greatest dividend (Chinese: 改革是中国最大的红利)", giving rise to what has been termed "Likonomics".

Formation of Xi's Core Leadership

As the anti-corruption campaign advanced, the political influence of Xi Jinping and Wang Qishan increased. Wang served successively as Secretary of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection and Vice President of the PRC. At the Sixth Plenary Session of the 18th Central Committee in October 2016, Xi Jinping was officially recognized as the core of the Party's leadership. His political thought was later codified as Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era.

Meanwhile, with Xi assuming leadership of the Central Leading Group for Comprehensively Deepening Reforms and the National Security Commission, his authority expanded into areas previously under the State Council and Premier Li's control. Li Keqiang's power correspondingly narrowed, limited largely to administrative responsibilities. This marked a significant shift in the structure and operation of China's central leadership compared with the previous "Hu–Wen Administration". The Party under Xi's leadership was consolidated into a centralized authority, described by analysts as marking the effective decline of the collective leadership system established since Deng Xiaoping.

Tensions within the Xi–Li Administration

As Xi Jinping's second term as General Secretary progressed, particularly after the outbreak of COVID-19 in mainland China, reports began circulating of disagreements between Xi and Premier Li Keqiang. Some observers interpreted Li's public statements in his capacity as head of the State Council as occasionally diverging from Xi's policy line.

For example, in early 2020, under Xi's "dynamic zero-COVID" policy, Li proposed measures such as promoting the "street vendor economy" to quickly restore economic activity; however, these initiatives were subsequently halted. Certain foreign media, including Radio France Internationale, portraying him as a cautious bureaucrat or "middle-ranking administrator". Later that year, at a State Council press conference, Li remarked that approximately 600 million low- and middle-income people in China earned around 1,000 RMB per month on average, drawing widespread domestic and international attention. This statement was also seen by some analysts as undermining Xi's poverty alleviation achievements and potentially impacting the goal of building a moderately prosperous society by 2021.

During the August 2020 opening ceremony of the BeiDou-3 satellite system, Li reportedly faced an awkward situation in which attendees were not given the opportunity to applaud him, and Xi was described as expressing visible disdain, which some interpreted as a public manifestation of tensions within the leadership.

By 2022, as the strict "dynamic zero-COVID" measures began to affect the economy and public confidence in the government, perceptions of escalating tensions between Xi and Li increased. In the lead-up to the 20th National Congress, speculation intensified, including political rumors such as a hypothetical "Xi steps down, Li steps up" scenario.

Li Qiang succeeded

On 23 October 2022, at the First Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the CCP, Li Keqiang was succeeded by Li Qiang as the second-ranking member of the Politburo Standing Committee, immediately after Xi Jinping.