Adedokun Waliyu 
His reelection will solidify his control of the country and make him the longest-serving head of state of Communist China since its founding in 1949.
Chinese President Xi Jinping has been reelected for the third term of five years in office in what has been described as an unprecedented official endorsement by the country’s political elite on Friday.
His reelection will solidify his control of the country and make him the longest-serving head of state of Communist China since its founding in 1949.
Xi’s reelection on Friday followed an overwhelming vote of legislatures in Beijing’s Great Hall of the People, according to CNN, adding that it was a highly choreographed exercise in the political theatre meant to demonstrate the legitimacy and unity of the ruling elite.
He received a unanimous 2,952 votes followed by a standing ovation.
The reappointment of Xi, China’s most powerful and authoritarian leader in decades, was largely seen as a formality after the 69-year-old secured a norm-shattering third term as head of the Chinese Communist Party last fall.
In China, the presidency – or “state chairman” in Chinese – is a largely ceremonial title. Real power resides in the positions of head of the party and military – two key roles that Xi also holds and was reappointed to at a key Communist Party congress in October.
Nevertheless, his reappointment as head of state officially completes his transition into a second decade in power.
And it comes amid a broader reshuffle of leadership roles in the central government, or the State Council, and other state organisations that further increase Xi’s already firm grasp on the levers of power.
According to the CNN report, Li Qiang, one of Xi’s most trusted protégés, is expected to be chosen as China’s premier on Saturday.
Traditionally, the premiership is an influential role in charge of the economy, although, over the past decade, its power has been severely eroded by Xi, who has taken almost all decision-making into his own hands.
On Friday, the National People’s Congress (NPC) also appointed other key state leaders, including Zhao Leji as the body’s head and Han Zheng as the country’s vice president.
The newly appointed leaders all took a public oath of allegiance to the Chinese constitution inside the Great Hall of the People.
