Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party
The Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party, officially the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, is the highest organ when the national congress is not in session and is tasked with carrying out congress resolutions, directing all party work, and representing the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) externally. It is currently composed of 205 full members and 171 alternate members (see list). Members are nominally elected once every five years by the National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party. In practice, the selection process is done privately, usually through consultation of the CCP's Politburo and its corresponding Standing Committee.[1]
Not to be confused with Standing Committee of the National People's Congress.
Central Committee of the Communist Party of China
中国共产党中央委员会
Highest decision-making organ when National Congress is not in session.
Five years
None
by 2nd National Congress on 23 July 1922
23 July 1922
205
171
20th National Congress (2022)
中国共产党中央委员会
中國共產黨中央委員會
Zhōngguó Gòngchǎndǎng Zhōngyāng Wěiyuánhuì
Zhōngguó Gòngchǎndǎng Zhōngyāng Wěiyuánhuì
中共中央
Chinese-Communist Central
Zhōnggòng Zhōngyāng
Zhōnggòng Zhōngyāng
党中央
黨中央
Party Central
Dǎng Zhōngyāng
Dǎng Zhōngyāng
中央
中央
Central
Zhōngyāng
Zhōngyāng
The Central Committee is, formally, the "party's highest organ of authority" when the National Congress is not in a plenary session. According to the CCP's constitution, the Central Committee is vested with the power to elect the General Secretary and the members of the Politburo and its Standing Committee, as well as the Central Military Commission. It endorses the composition of the Secretariat and the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection. It also oversees the work of various executive national organs of the CCP. The administrative activities of the Central Committee are carried out by the Central Committee's General Office. The General Office forms the support staff of the central organs that work on the Central Committee's behalf in between plenary sessions (plenums).
The Committee usually convenes at least once a year at a plenum, and functions as a top forum for discussion about relevant policy issues. The committee operates, however, on the principle of democratic centralism; i.e., once a decision is made, the entire body speaks with one voice. The role of the Central Committee has varied throughout history. While it generally exercises power through formal procedures defined in the party constitution, the ability for it to affect outcomes of national-level personnel decisions is limited, as that function has generally been, in practice, carried out by the Politburo and retired party elders who retain influence. Nonetheless, Central Committee plenums function as venues whereby policy is discussed, fine-tuned, and publicly released in the form of "resolutions" or "decisions".