Xi Jinping

Xi Jinping (born 15 June 1953) is a Chinese politician. He is the paramount leader of China. He has been the general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and chairman of the Party Central Military Commission (CMC) since 2012. Since 2013, he has also been the president of China and chairman of the State Central Military Commission. Other uses of the name Jinping are listed on Jinping (disambiguation). That page also explains a Chinese name and its family name.

Xi is the older son of Xi Zhongxun and his second wife, Qi Xin. He was born in Beijing. He is considered a princeling, but early in his career he kept a quiet image. When he was a teenager, his father lost his position. Xi was sent to the village of Liangjiahe, in Shaanxi, during the Cultural Revolution. He lived in a yaodong there. He joined the CCP after several tries and became the local party secretary.

After studying chemical engineering at Tsinghua University as a worker-peasant-soldier student, Xi moved up through the party ranks. He was governor of Fujian from 1999 to 2002. He then became governor and party secretary of Zhejiang from 2002 to 2007. In 2007, he briefly took over as Shanghai party secretary, replacing Chen Liangyu, who had lost his position. That same year, he joined the Politburo Standing Committee and became the top-ranked member of the Secretariat. He was made vice president in 2008 and vice chairman of the CMC in 2010. In 2012, he took over from Hu Jintao as China's leader. He was the first paramount leader born after the foundation of the People's Republic of China.

Under his leadership, China adopted the Made in China 2025 policy. This policy encourages making higher-value products and relying less on foreign technology. His time in power has also included a large anti-corruption campaign, a restructuring of the People's Liberation Army, and poverty alleviation. The government has taken more control over the economy and society. It has also cracked down on private companies, especially in real estate, technology, and tutoring outside of school. At the same time, censorship and mass surveillance have grown, and human rights have gotten worse. During the COVID-19 pandemic, he used zero-COVID policies for two years. After widespread protests, he lifted them.

Xi has taken a strong approach in foreign policy. This includes his approach to China–United States relations, the South China Sea, and the Sino-Indian border dispute. Through the Belt and Road Initiative, he grew China's economic and diplomatic presence in Africa and Eurasia. His 2015 meeting with Taiwanese president Ma Ying-jeou was the first between cross-strait leaders since the Chinese Civil War. Relations became worse later, under the Democratic Progressive Party. He oversaw the making of the 2020 Hong Kong national security law, which largely silenced the city's pro-democracy camp. In 2018, Xi changed the constitution to remove presidential term limits. After his re-election in 2023, he became the first Chinese president to serve more than two terms. Xi's ideology, known as Xi Jinping Thought, has been added to the party and national constitutions.

Early life and education

Main article: Early life of Xi Jinping

Xi Jinping was born on 15 June 1953 in Beijing. He was the third child of Xi Zhongxun and his second wife, Qi Xin. His father was a revolutionary in the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). After the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949, he held several important jobs, including head of the Party Publicity Department, vice premier, and vice chairperson of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress. Xi has two older sisters, Qi Qiaoqiao and Qi An'an. His father came from Fuping County, in Shaanxi. Xi went to Beijing Bayi School, where most of the students were children of high-ranking military officers. In 1963, when Xi was ten, his father was removed from the CCP and sent to work in a factory in Luoyang, in Henan. When the Cultural Revolution began in 1966, Xi was treated unfairly because of his father's position. After Bayi School closed in 1967, he moved to the Beijing No. 25 School. In 1968, his father was put in prison. That same year, Xi went to Liangjiahe Village in Yan'an, Shaanxi, as part of the Down to the Countryside Movement. Yan'an was then one of the poorest places in the country. After a few months, he left and went to Beijing, but he was caught and sent to a work camp. Later, with the help of his aunt and uncle, he returned to the village.

He then spent about seven years in Liangjiahe. He lived in a yaodong, a kind of cave house found in northern China. In 1973, Yanchuan County asked him to lead social education work in another village. However, Liangjiahe asked for him to come back, and he returned. Over time, he became a leader in the village and was given a role in the local Party branch. In 1975, Yan'an was given two places at Tsinghua University, and Xi applied. From 1975 to 1979, he studied chemical engineering at Tsinghua in Beijing as a worker-peasant-soldier student.

Early political career

Main article: Early political career of Xi Jinping

After graduating in April 1979, Xi worked at the General Office of the State Council. He was one of three secretaries to Geng Biao, who was the secretary-general of the Central Military Commission.

In March 1982, Xi became deputy party leader of Zhengding County in Hebei. He and a colleague wrote to the central government about the heavy demands placed on farmers, and the yearly amount was lowered by 14 million kilograms. He tried the household responsibility system in a poorer village. He also helped restore the Longxing Temple. He helped bring the filming of Dream of the Red Chamber to Zhengding, and he invited visitors such as Hua Luogeng and Yu Guangyuan.

In 1984, CCP Central Organization Department secretary-general He Zai and Wei Jianxing praised Xi to Hu Yaobang. In 1985, Xi visited Iowa in the United States to study farming. After that, he was moved to Xiamen. There he worked on Xiamen Airlines and married Peng Liyuan. In 1988, he became party leader of Ningde. In 1990, he was sent to Fuzhou City.

In 1995, he became deputy secretary of the Fujian Provincial Committee of the Chinese Communist Party. In 1997, he was chosen as an alternate member of the 15th CCP Central Committee at the 15th Party National Congress. In 1998, he joined the 9th National People's Congress. He was governor of Fujian from 1999 to 2002. During this time, he supported projects such as Fuzhou Changle International Airport, Fuzhou Port, Fuyao Glass, and Newland Digital Technology. He also promoted the idea of "Megalopolises." He helped the province recover from the Yuanhua smuggling case and set up the 12345 Citizen Service Platform.

In 2002, he moved to Zhejiang. After the 16th Party National Congress, he became its top party leader. That November, he was elected to the 16th Central Committee. From 2004 to 2007, he worked closely with Li Qiang at the Zhejiang Party Committee. Together, they drafted the Double Eight Strategy.

In 2007, Shanghai Party secretary Chen Liangyu was dismissed over a social security fund scandal. Xi was then moved to Shanghai, where he served as party secretary for seven months.

After the 17th Party National Congress, the 17th Central Committee chose Xi on 22 October 2007 as the 6th-ranking member of the Politburo Standing Committee. He also became the first-ranking member of the 17th Secretariat. He led the Central Leading Group for Party Building and the Central Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Leading Group. He was deputy leader of the Central Foreign Affairs Leading Group. He was ranked above Li Keqiang, which suggested he would succeed Hu Jintao as China's next leader.

In March 2008, at the first session of the 11th National People's Congress, he was elected vice president of China. He prepared for the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. He became president of the Central Party School. He also visited Shaanxi after the 2008 Sichuan earthquake.

Later, after the July 2009 Ürümqi riots, he was put in charge of restoring order, with help from Zhou Yongkang. The rise of Bo Xilai, the party secretary of Chongqing, was seen as a possible threat to Xi's path to power. However, Bo's downfall came with the Wang Lijun incident.

In October 2010, Xi was elected vice chairman of the Central Military Commission. In November 2012, at the 18th Party National Congress, the 18th Central Committee chose him as party general secretary. This made him the CCP leader and, informally, China's paramount leader. In March 2013, he was elected president at the 12th National People's Congress, replacing Hu Jintao.

Leadership

Main article: General secretaryship of Xi Jinping

Many political observers say Xi is the most powerful Chinese leader since Chairman Mao Zedong, especially since presidential term limits ended in 2018. Xi has moved away from the collective leadership practices the party used before. In 2016, he was officially named the "leadership core." He was the fourth leader to receive this title, after Mao Zedong, Deng Xiaoping and Jiang Zemin. Xi was re-elected as general secretary in 2017 and again in 2022. In 2022, he became the first party leader since Mao Zedong to be chosen for a third term. He was also re-elected as president in 2023.

Soon after Xi came to power, he called for a crackdown on corruption. This started an anti-corruption campaign. He said he would go after both "tigers and flies," which means high-ranking officials and ordinary party workers. The campaign has removed many well-known officials from their jobs. Since Xi became general secretary, the government has also increased its control over what people can say and read in China.

Political positions

Further information: Views of Xi Jinping

Main article: Chinese Dream

Xi and members of the Communist Party came up with the phrase "Chinese Dream" to describe his plans for China. He first used it during a visit to the National Museum of China in November 2012. It has since become the main political slogan of his time as leader. Some publications have said it may have been inspired by the American Dream. Xi connects the "Chinese Dream" with the "great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation." He describes traditional Chinese culture as the "soul" of the nation. He has also set out the "Four Confidences" for Party members and the Chinese people. He supports patriotic art and red classics, and says art should be judged by political standards. He criticizes market-driven art that "exaggerate[s] society's dark side." He also rejects art-for-art's-sake. He shared similar messages at the 18th Party Congress, the Yan'an Forum, and his Speech at the Forum on Literature and Art. In 2021, he spoke at the China Federation of Literary and Art Circles and the Chinese Writers Association. He also supports the "Sinicization of Chinese religion." He said at the 19th Party Congress that religions in China must be Chinese in their orientation.

See also: Xi Jinping Thought on Culture, Cultural policy of China, and Religious policy of Xi Jinping

Xi has said that "only socialism can save China." He calls socialism with Chinese characteristics the "only correct path" to bringing the nation back to strength. According to BBC News, some observers believe he is more committed to the "idea of a communist project" than leaders who came after the economic reforms of the 1970s. Former Australian prime minister Kevin Rudd called him a Marxist–Leninist. Xi wants the Party to keep working toward realizing communism. He says "the party leads them all," meaning the government, the military, society, and schools. He pointed to the 100th anniversary of the CCP and said that "without the Communist Party of China, there would be no new China" (see here). He asks party officials to practice self-revolution to remove corruption. He compares the Party Central to the "cerebrum" and the "central nervous system." Xi opposes historical nihilism, which he linked to the collapse of the Soviet Union. He calls for the Sinicization of Marxism. He created the Two Integrations in 2021 and started an educational campaign from 2019 to 2020. He has ruled out a multi-party system. He calls China's socialist democracy the most genuine democracy, but many foreign analysts disagree and describe China as a one-party authoritarian state. Xi has been called a "traditionalist" or a "neo-authoritarian." He supports Chinese modernization over Westernisation. In October 2017, the CCP announced his ideas as "Xi Jinping Thought," which was added to the Party and state constitutions. Liu Yunshan and Wang Huning played key roles in promoting these ideas. This was described in the book series The Governance of China, published by Foreign Languages Press. The app Xuexi Qiangguo became China's most popular smartphone app in 2019.

Personal life

Main article: Xi family

Xi's first marriage was to Ke Lingling, the daughter of Ke Hua, who was China's ambassador to the United Kingdom in the early 1980s. They divorced after a few years, and Ke moved to the UK. In 1987, Xi married the well-known folk singer Peng Liyuan. At that time, Peng was much more famous in China than Xi. The couple often lived apart because they had different jobs. Peng has played a more visible role as China's "first lady" than earlier first ladies. For example, she welcomed Michelle Obama when she visited China in March 2014. Their daughter, Xi Mingze, graduated from Harvard University in spring 2015. The family has a home in Jade Spring Hill, a garden and residential area in north-western Beijing.

In 2012, Bloomberg News reported that some relatives, including his sister Qi Qiaoqiao, had large business interests. There was no evidence that Xi had helped them. The Bloomberg News website was then blocked in mainland China, and sales of Bloomberg Terminals there slowed down. Relatives of some top officials were named in the Panama Papers. These included Xi's brother-in-law Deng Jiagui, who had two shell companies in the British Virgin Islands. The New York Times reported that Xi told his family to get out of their investments after he came to power. In 2015, Wang Jianlin, leader of Dalian Wanda, said that Qi and Deng had sold their shares before a company share sale in 2014.

Peng described Xi as hardworking and down-to-earth, saying, "In my eyes, he's just my husband." In 1992, The Washington Post journalist Lena H. Sun interviewed Xi, who was then the Communist Party secretary of Fuzhou. She found him more relaxed and confident than many officials his age. Chinese state media has shown more of Xi's private life than previous leaders did, although it is still strictly controlled. According to Xinhua News Agency, Xi swims one kilometre and walks every day when he has time.

He enjoys books by foreign writers, especially Russian ones, such as Leo Tolstoy, Mikhail Sholokhov, Victor Hugo, Honoré de Balzac, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe and Jack London. He reportedly used What Is to Be Done? by Nikolay Chernyshevsky as a guide at the 16th BRICS summit. He is also reported to enjoy films and shows such as Saving Private Ryan, Sleepless in Seattle, The Godfather, and Game of Thrones. He has praised independent film-maker Jia Zhangke. Xi is also a big football fan who gave a push to the Great Chinese Football Dream. He said he had three wishes for the China national team: to qualify for a World Cup, to host one, and to win one by 2050.

Public image

It is hard to know what Chinese people really think of Xi. There are no independent surveys in China, and social media posts about him are heavily censored. Still, he is believed to be widely popular. A 2014 poll by the Harvard Kennedy School's Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation gave him a score of 9 out of 10 for approval in China. A YouGov poll from July 2019 found that about 22% of people in mainland China named Xi as the person they admired most. That was the largest share. In Hong Kong, the number was less than 5%.

In the spring of 2026, the Pew Research Center asked people in 36 countries whether they trusted Xi to do the right thing in world affairs. About 34% had confidence in him, and 53% had none. These numbers were higher than those for Russian President Vladimir Putin and United States President Donald Trump. In 2017, The Economist named Xi the most powerful person in the world. In 2018, Forbes ranked him as the most powerful and influential person in the world. He took the top spot from Putin, who had held it for five years in a row. In 2022, Time also named Xi the world's most powerful person. Since 2013, Reporters Without Borders, a group that works to protect the right to share and receive information freely, has included Xi on its list of people it sees as threats to press freedom.

Honours

Main article: List of awards and honours received by Xi Jinping

Xi has received state honours from several countries. These include the Order of the Golden Eagle from Kazakhstan and the Order of the Crown from Tajikistan.

Select works