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Xi Jinping–Li Keqiang Administration

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Not to be confused with Li Keqiang government or General secretaryship of Xi Jinping.
Xi Jinping–Li Keqiang Administration
习近平–李克强体制

5th generation Communist leadership of
the People's Republic of China
General Secretary & President Xi Jinping (left)
State Council Premier Li Keqiang (right)
Date formed15 March 2013
Date dissolved11 March 2023
People and organisations
Head of stateXi Jinping
Head of governmentLi Keqiang
Deputy head of government
Cabinet I (2013–2018)
Cabinet II (2018–2023)
Member partyChinese Communist Party
Eight minor parties
History
Elections
Legislature terms
PredecessorHu–Wen Administration
SuccessorXi Core Administration[dubious – discuss]
Politics of China
Leadership
Leadership generations
Succession of power
Party and state leaders
Orders of precedence
Related systems
Communist Party
History
National People's Congress (14th)
State representative
Executive organ
Military organ
Supervisory organ
Judicial organs
United front
Historical parties:
Propaganda
Cross-strait relations
Foreign relations
Related topics
flag China portal

The Xi Jinping–Li Keqiang Administration was the administration of China from 2013 to 2023. Xi Jinping and Li Keqiang succeeded Hu Jintao and Wen Jiabao after the 12th National People's Congress.

Xi Jinping replaced Hu Jintao as general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party and president of China, and Li Keqiang replaced Wen Jiabao as premier of the State Council. The rest of the fifth generation of the CCP leadership includes Zhang Dejiang, Yu Zhengsheng, Liu Yunshan, Wang Qishan, Zhang Gaoli, Li Yuanchao, Liu Yandong, and Wang Yang.[1]

The Xi Jinping–Li Keqiang Administration ended following the end of Li Keqiang's term of premiership on 11 March 2023. Li Qiang took over the office of premier of China in March 2023 during the first session of the 14th National People's Congress.[2]

Functions and powers

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Party organs Head Deputy Formation
National Security Commission Xi Jinping Li Keqiang
Li Zhanshu		 January 2014
Central Comprehensively Deepening Reforms Commission Li Keqiang
Wang Huning
Han Zheng		 March 2018
Central Financial and Economic Affairs Commission Li Keqiang
Central Foreign Affairs Commission
Central Cyberspace Affairs Commission Li Keqiang
Wang Huning
Central Military and Civil Integration Development Commission January 2017

Politburo Standing Committee

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Main articles: 18th Politburo of the Chinese Communist Party and 19th Politburo of the Chinese Communist Party

Presidency

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Xi Jinping (left) and Li Keqiang (right)
Office Officeholder(s) Tenure
President Xi Jinping 2013–
Vice President Li Yuanchao
Wang Qishan 		2013–2018
2018–2023

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

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

The State Council

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Main article: Li Keqiang Government

History and Development

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Formation

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See also: Generations of Chinese leadership

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.[1] 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,[2] 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

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See also: Li Keqiang government and Xi Jinping Thought on Economy

At the beginning of their terms, both domestically and internationally, the administration was sometimes referred to as the Xi–Li New Policies,[3] 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".[4][5][6]

Formation of Xi's Core Leadership

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See also: Xi Jinping faction

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.[7] 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.[8] 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.[9]

Tensions within the Xi–Li Administration

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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.[10]

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".[11] 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,[12] 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.[11]

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.[13]

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.[14]

Li Qiang succeeded

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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.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b "10 top leaders elected into new CPC Central Committee". China.org.cn. Archived from the original on 14 November 2012. Retrieved 15 November 2012.
  2. ^ a b "Li Qiang: China appoints Xi Jinping ally as premier". BBC News. 2023-03-11. Archived from the original on 2023-03-14. Retrieved 2023-03-14.
  3. ^ ""习李新政"下官员的"变形记"--评论-人民网". cpc.people.com.cn. Retrieved 2025-08-13.
  4. ^ "外报：改革思路相当到位 "习李新政"呼之欲出-中新网". www.chinanews.com.cn. Retrieved 2025-08-13.
  5. ^ Kumar, V. Phani. "李克强经济学的三大重要支柱". WSJ (in Chinese (China)). Archived from the original on 2017-03-09. Retrieved 2025-08-13.
  6. ^ staff, R. F. A. (2023-10-27). "Li Keqiang: The diplomat between Xi's power and global challenges". Radio Free Asia. Retrieved 2025-08-13.
  7. ^ "中共十八届六中全会在京举行--新闻报道--人民网". cpc.people.com.cn. Retrieved 2025-08-13.
  8. ^ "重大变化："习指示"比"李批示 "更高级 - 评析 - (移动版)". 看中国. 2014-01-25. Retrieved 2025-08-13.
  9. ^ "集体领导终结 团派被灭发生于何时？ – 清涟居". 2022-10-27. Retrieved 2025-08-13.
  10. ^ "张杰：中南海权斗公开化 李克强为何隐忍？". 议报. 2020-08-03. Retrieved 2025-08-13.
  11. ^ a b "李克强6亿人月均收入千元说冲击中国脱贫大计". RFI - 法国国际广播电台 (in Simplified Chinese). 2020-05-31. Retrieved 2025-08-13.
  12. ^ "怎么看"6亿人每月收入1000元"-新华网". www.xinhuanet.com. Retrieved 2025-08-13.
  13. ^ 自由時報電子報 (2020-08-02). "習李鬥躍檯面？！北斗三號開通儀式上 習近平側臉蔑視李克強出糗 - 國際 - 自由時報電子報". 自由時報電子報 (in Chinese). Archived from the original on 2023-03-23. Retrieved 2025-08-13.
  14. ^ "習李矛盾加劇 李克強：不許疫情擾夏糧收割". RFA 自由亞洲電台粵語部 (in Chinese (Taiwan)). 2022-05-29. Retrieved 2025-08-13.
Preceded by PRC leadership
5th generation 		Succeeded by
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