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Election procedures set for CPC national congress personnel reshuffle
BEIJING—The 17th National Congress of the Communist Party of China will
first hold a primary election before a final ballot to choose members of
a new CPC central committee and its discipline commission, the presidium
of the congress decided here Wednesday.
The 237-member presidium to oversee the congress held its second meeting
at the Great Hall of the People Wednesday afternoon, and adopted the
electoral procedure that has been in practice since the 13th party
congress in 1987, Xinhua was informed.
The presidium meeting, presided over by Hu Jintao, endorsed a proposed
name-list of nominees for the candidates of members and alternate
members of the central committee, and members of the central discipline
commission. The name-list will be submitted to all delegations to the
congress for consideration.
A name-list of ballot scrutineers was also accepted by the presidium,
and will be ratified by the congress before the final vote begins.
Zeng Qinghong, secretary-general of the congress, briefed the presidium
on the name-list of nominees.
In addition, the presidium adopted draft resolutions on the report made
by Hu Jintao on behalf of the 16th CPC Central Committee, the report of
the Central Discipline Commission and amendments to the party
constitution. The resolutions are to be submitted to delegates for
consideration. The presidium represents people of different aspects,
consisting of members of the Political Bureau of the 16th CPC Central
Committee, retired party veterans, leading officials of ministries and
provincial-level localities, military officers and grassroots party
members.
Among the presidium are 29-year-old table tennis Olympic champion Wang
Nan, China’s first astronaut in space Yang Liwei, outstanding female
judge Song Yushui, and “National Model Worker” bridge crane-driver Xu
Zhenchao.
The personnel reshuffle is one of the most important agenda of party
congress. The CPC party constitution rules that all elections should be
carried out through secret ballot.
The primary election system was first introduced into party congress in
1956 when the 8th national party congress was held. Then at the 13th
national congress in 1987, the differential voting system was adopted.
At that congress, five percent of nominees lost in the primary election
for candidates of members of central committee, and 12 percent of
nominees lost in the election for candidates of alternate members.
The margin of elimination in the vote of the 14th and 15th national
congresses were not released. The 16th party congress, however, recorded
a margin of elimination at a little more than five percent. At the 16th
party congress in 2002, members of the central committee were elected
with a 5.1 percent margin, and alternate members of the central
committee, 5.7 percent. Seven people lost in the primary vote for
members of the Central Discipline Commission, marking a 5.8 percent
margin.
Ye Duchu, a senior party expert with the Central Party School, said he
expected the margin of elimination this year to remain similar to that
of the 15th and 16th party congresses, although some others have
speculated that the margin this time may be higher. “The 15th and 16th
party congresses adopted a margin of around five percent, and I think
the 17th congress will follow suit,” Ye said. Hu Jintao said in his
report to the congress that the party should “expand intra-party
democracy.”
“We will reform the intra-Party electoral system and improve the system
for nominating candidates and electoral methods,” he said in the report.
In choosing delegates prior to the congress, all 38 constituencies
adopted a 15 percent margin in the elections, five percentage points
higher than that in 2002.
Who would become top party leaders of China will not be known until next
Tuesday, when the newly-elected members of the Standing Committee of the
Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee meet with the press.—Xinhua |
