Chinese leader Xi Jinping introduces new members of the Politburo Standing Committee in Beijing.
Tingshu Wang/Reuters
Updated 1:38 AM EDT, Sun October 23, 2022
Members of China’s ruling Communist Party met for the 20th Party Congress, a leadership reshuffle that happens twice a decade.
In recent years, these meetings have seen a streamlined transfer of power: the convention is for the top party leader, having completed two five-year terms, to pass the baton to a carefully chosen successor. But this year, Xi Jinping smashed that precedent, taking on a third term as general secretary of the party and pitching China into a new era of strongman rule and uncertainty over when or how the country will see another leader.