The vice president of the People's Republic of China (), also known as state vice chairman (), is a senior position in the government of the

People's Republic of China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

. It was formerly translated as the vice chairman of the People's Republic of China from 1954 to 1975.

Selection and powers

The office was created by the 1982 constitution. Formally, the vice president is elected by the

National People's Congress The National People's Congress of the People's Republic of China (NPC; ), or simply the National People's Congress, is constitutionally the supreme state authority and the national legislature of the People's Republic of China. With 2,9 ...

in accordance with Article 62 of the Constitution. In practice, this election falls into the category of single-candidate elections. The candidate is recommended by the

Presidium of the National People's Congress The presidium of a session of the National People's Congress of the People's Republic of China is the presiding body of the National People's Congress (NPC). Composition It is composed of 178 senior officials of the Chinese Communist Party (CC ...

, which also theoretically has the power to recall the vice president. By law, the vice president must be a Chinese citizen of 45 years of age or older. Prior to March 2018, he or she cannot serve for over two terms, a term being the equivalent of one session of the NPC, which is five years. The vice president's duties include assisting the

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

, and replacing him should he resign or die in office. In reality the position of the vice president is mostly ceremonial; Vice Presidents

Zeng Qinghong Zeng Qinghong (born 30 July 1939) is a retired Chinese politician. He was a member of the Politburo Standing Committee of the Chinese Communist Party, China's highest leadership council, and top-ranked member of the Secretariat of the Central ...

, Hu Jintao, and

Xi Jinping Xi Jinping ( ; ; ; born 15 June 1953) is a Chinese politician who has served as the general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC), and thus as the paramount leader of China, ...

have been members of the

Politburo Standing Committee The Politburo Standing Committee (PSC), officially the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, is a committee consisting of the top leadership of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Histori ...

of the

Chinese Communist Party The Chinese Communist Party (CCP), officially the Communist Party of China (CPC), is the founding and sole ruling party of the People's Republic of China (PRC). Under the leadership of Mao Zedong, the CCP emerged victorious in the Chinese Civil ...

(CCP) and the Central Secretariat, the country's main decision making bodies; these three served concurrently as the first-ranked Secretary of the Secretariat, in charge of party affairs. The vice president may play a major role in foreign affairs. For instance, the vice president generally sits on the Foreign Affairs Leading Group, a policy coordination body of the CCP. The vice president has also typically sits on the

Central Coordination Group for Hong Kong and Macau Affairs The Central Leading Group on Hong Kong and Macau Affairs () is an internal policy coordination group of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and the State Council of the People's Republic of China, reporting to the CCP P ...

. Therefore, while the vice president may not actually have substantive powers as defined in the Constitution, the office nonetheless carries significance and prestige. The holders of the office have all been individuals with a degree of political clout. Vice President

Li Yuanchao Li Yuanchao (born 20 November 1950) is a retired Chinese politician. He was the Vice President of the People's Republic of China from 2013 to 2018 and the Honorary President of the Red Cross Society of China. He was a member of the Secretari ...

was a member of the CCP Politburo until 2017, but not the Standing Committee. His successor, Wang Qishan, was a retired member of the Standing Committee at the time of his ascension.

List of vice presidents

; Generations of leadership:

Central People's Government The State Council, constitutionally synonymous with the Central People's Government since 1954 (particularly in relation to local governments), is the chief administrative authority of the People's Republic of China. It is chaired by the p ...
(1949–1954)

; Vice Chairmen of the Central People's Government : (co-serving, 1 October 1949 – 27 September 1954) #

Zhu De Zhu De (; ; also Chu Teh; 1 December 1886 – 6 July 1976) was a Chinese general, military strategist, politician and revolutionary in the Chinese Communist Party. Born into poverty in 1886 in Sichuan, he was adopted by a wealthy uncle at ...

# Liu Shaoqi #

Song Qingling Rosamond Soong Ch'ing-ling (27 January 189329 May 1981) was a Chinese political figure. As the third wife of Sun Yat-sen, then Premier of the Kuomintang and President of the Republic of China, she was often referred to as Madame Sun Yat-sen. ...

Li Jishen Li Jishen or Li Chi-shen (5 November 1885 – 9 October 1959) was a Chinese military officer and politician, general of the National Revolutionary Army of the Republic of China, Vice Chairman of the People's Republic of China (1949–1954 ...

Zhang Lan Zhang Lan (; 1872 – February 1955), courtesy name Biaofang (表方), was a Chinese political activist best known for being the chairman of the China Democratic League from its founding in 1941 until his death in 1955. Biography Zhang was bor ...

Gao Gang Gao Gang (; 1905 – August 1954) was a Communist Party of China (CPC) leader during the Chinese Civil War and the early years of the People's Republic of China (PRC), before becoming the victim of the first major purge within the CPC since befo ...

(until his suicide on 17 August 1954)

The 1st Constitution (1954–1975)

The 4th Constitution (1982–present)

References

Living former vice president

External links

* {{People's Republic of China politics

Vice President A vice president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vice president is on ...

.Vice President .Vice President