China’s ruling Communist Party has expelled a record 33 senior officials in a sweeping purge confirmed at the end of a four-day meeting in Beijing, cutting its top military command down to just two members and setting the stage for a leadership reshuffle in 2027.
The expulsions were formally ratified on Thursday, 29 October 2026, at the close of the party’s fifth plenum — a meeting of its Central Committee, the large leadership body that sits below the Politburo. Sixteen of those expelled came from the military, in the deepest shake-up of the armed forces’ leadership in years.
What happened
The plenum, the fifth since the current Central Committee was formed in 2022, ended with an official communique confirming the removal of 33 officials from the party. The meeting had been billed as a session on party discipline, rather than the economic reform gatherings of recent years, and its message was unmistakable: internal loyalty and obedience now come first.
President Xi Jinping, 73, delivered a work report to the gathering on behalf of the Politburo and presented a resolution on strengthening what the party calls full and rigorous self-governance. The communique said the party had confronted a stark reality — that its leadership had at times weakened or become hollowed out — and pledged to keep turning its disciplinary tools inward.
The gathering also confirmed that the party’s 21st National Congress will be held in Beijing in the second half of 2027. That congress, held once every five years, will decide the next leadership line-up, and analysts widely expect Xi to seek a fourth five-year term as party chief, extending a rule that began in 2012.
Who was expelled
The most prominent names were military men. Zhang Youxia, formerly the country’s most senior general and a vice-chairman of the Central Military Commission, was expelled, along with Liu Zhenli, a former chief of the Joint Staff. Former Politburo member Ma Xingrui, who once ran the party in Xinjiang, was also removed, as was Liu Jianchao, the former head of the party’s International Department, who had not been seen in public since August 2025.
Former industry minister Jin Zhuanglong was among those ousted, and reports also named Zhong Shaojun, a long-serving senior secretary in the military commission. The communique said the party had reviewed cases involving serious violations of discipline and law, confirming disciplinary decisions already taken by the Politburo.
The military command left with two members
The purge has left the Central Military Commission — the seven-member body that commands China’s armed forces and is chaired by Xi himself — with only two members: Xi and Zhang Shengmin.
Zhang Shengmin was the meeting’s one major promotion. A former anti-corruption chief in the military, he was elevated to the Politburo, the party’s top decision-making body. He had served as the armed forces’ anti-corruption enforcer from 2018 until July 2026 and was made a vice-chairman of the military commission last year.
Five of the seven commission members appointed in the 2022 reshuffle have now been purged. The scale of the clear-out has raised questions about experience and continuity at the top of the military, even as China continues to unveil new weapons and expand its forces.
The empty seats tell their own story
Attendance at the plenum was strikingly low. Only 279 full and alternate members of the Central Committee attended, down from 315 at the previous plenum in October 2025 and 364 in July 2024. It was the first time in Xi’s 14 years in power that attendance at a plenum fell below 300.
Of those present, 162 were full members and 117 were alternates. The Central Committee began its term in 2022 with 376 members, so more than a quarter of the original cohort was absent — many because of purges. Reuters described it as the highest absence rate in the post-Mao era.
The numbers underline how far the campaign has gone. The latest expulsions bring the total number of officials removed during Xi’s third term to 51, compared with 35 in his first term and five in his second. Three sitting Politburo members have now been ousted during the current term, the highest number since 1980. Separately, China’s anti-corruption watchdog reported that 680,000 people across the party apparatus were disciplined in the first nine months of 2026.
Why it matters
Xi launched his anti-corruption drive shortly after taking power in 2012, warning that unchecked graft could destroy the party itself. Over the following years it ensnared millions of officials, including one-time allies and figures once thought untouchable, and it helped him concentrate power in his own hands.
Analysts are divided on what this latest round means. Some see it as a genuine effort to impose discipline on a vast bureaucracy with few outside checks. Others argue the campaign has increasingly become a way to consolidate authority, with its pace depending less on the scale of corruption than on how secure Xi feels. One scholar noted that officials Xi himself promoted since 2012 have not been spared, calling the meeting a comprehensive clear-out of his own appointees.
Others point to a longer-term purpose: building a disciplined system that can carry Xi’s priorities through future leadership cycles, even at the cost of short-term disruption. The party itself framed the purge as self-cleansing, saying it had eliminated serious hidden dangers within the party, the state and the military.
The shake-up also lands at a tense moment in China’s relations with the outside world. Washington’s ban on imports from three Chinese biotech firms over alleged forced labour links has added fresh friction, while Volkswagen’s recent quarterly loss, hit by a slump in China, showed how the country’s economic slowdown is already reaching foreign boardrooms.
What happens next
The road now runs to the second half of 2027 and the 21st Party Congress. State media have given no hint of any loosening of Xi’s grip, and party newspapers have called on officials to unite even more tightly around him.
The key questions for the months ahead are practical ones: who fills the empty seats on the military commission and in the wider leadership, whether the purge widens to more senior officers, and whether a younger generation of officials is given real room to rise. The plenum communique itself said the party should improve how it trains and selects outstanding young cadres — an acknowledgement that renewal, not just removal, will decide what comes next.
Timeline
- 2012: Xi Jinping takes power and launches a sweeping anti-corruption campaign, warning that graft threatens the party’s survival.
- 2022: A new Central Committee of 376 members is named; a reshuffled seven-member Central Military Commission is appointed.
- July 2024: 364 members attend a plenum.
- October 2025: Attendance falls to 315 at the previous plenum.
- 26–29 October 2026: The fifth plenum meets behind closed doors in Beijing, focused on party discipline.
- 29 October 2026: The plenum confirms the expulsion of 33 officials and sets the 21st Party Congress for the second half of 2027.
- Second half of 2027: The Party Congress is due to choose the next leadership, with Xi widely expected to seek a fourth term.
Frequently asked questions
What is a plenum?
A plenum is a full meeting of the Communist Party’s Central Committee, the several-hundred-member body that sits between party congresses. It sets major policy direction and, as in this case, can confirm expulsions and leadership changes.
Why is the expulsion of 33 officials described as a record?
It is the largest number of senior officials expelled at a single plenum in recent party history, and it takes total removals in Xi’s third term to 51 — more than in either of his first two terms.
Who is Zhang Youxia?
Zhang Youxia was China’s most senior general and a vice-chairman of the Central Military Commission before his expulsion. His removal, along with that of former Joint Staff chief Liu Zhenli, shows the purge reaching the very top of the military.
Does the purge weaken China’s military?
It removes experienced commanders and leaves the military commission with only two members, which raises questions about continuity. The party argues the opposite: that removing corrupt or disloyal officers makes the forces stronger and more obedient.
What is the 21st Party Congress?
It is the party’s five-yearly congress, due in the second half of 2027, which will appoint the next Central Committee, Politburo and party leader. Xi is widely expected to seek a fourth term there.
Is Xi Jinping stepping down?
No signal from the plenum or state media points to a loosening of his grip. Party newspapers have urged tighter unity around him, and analysts widely expect him to remain party chief after the 2027 congress.
Related coverage
The purge is the latest in a series of fast-moving stories from China and its wider region. For more on the country’s place in the world, read our World section, which also carries the week’s other major international developments.