CCP proposes removing two-term limit on presidency, enabling Xi to remain in power

Papa Xi continues to eclipse his post-Mao predecessors

The Chinese Communist Party has proposed excising a clause from the state constitution that limits the presidency to two consecutive terms, effectively enabling Xi Jinping to remain in power indefinitely.

The terms of the announcement were mystifying, as noted by New York Times reporters Chris Buckley and Keith Bradsher. Proposed by the CCP’s Central Committee — a 200-member body of senior officials set to convene a three-day plenum session on Monday — the revision was initially publicized through Xinhua’s English-language site, with reports not surfacing in the Chinese-language media until more than an hour later.

First elected in 2013, Xi is poised for reelection to a second term at the Chinese parliament’s annual meeting later this month, in what is considered a formality. Among the five new members named to China’s top ruling council — the Politburo Standing Committee — at the 19th Party Plenum in October, none are below the age of sixty, providing no obvious successor to Xi.

Both of Xi’s immediate predecessors, Hu Jintao and Jiang Zemin, stepped down after a decade of rule. If abolishing the two-term limit translates into Xi remaining president beyond 2023, as seems likely, he will further distinguish himself as China’s most powerful leader in the post-Mao era.