Record Expulsions at CCP Plenum Signal Deepening Purge Under Xi Jinping

China expelled a record number of officials from the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) at the conclusion of a major political gathering, where an unprecedented number of empty seats underscored the scale of purges under Xi Jinping.

A record 33 members were expelled during this week’s fifth plenum, the annual gathering of top party officials.

Only 279 of the 376 full and alternate members of the CCP Central Committee attended the session, compared with the roster established in 2022. The absence of more than 25% of the original cohort — many removed through purges — marks the highest number of “empty chairs” in modern Chinese history.

Confirmed expulsions included Zhang Youxia, formerly the second-ranking officer in the military hierarchy, and Ma Xingrui, the former party secretary of Xinjiang. Other absences remained unexplained.

“The proliferation of empty seats underscores the plenum’s focus on Xi’s vision of strict internal discipline,” said Neil Thomas, a senior fellow at the Asia Society Policy Institute, in a post on X.

This year’s plenum centered on party governance. Since assuming power in 2012, Xi has prioritized rooting out corruption within the party. In recent years, however, the campaign has escalated, ensnaring officials at the highest echelons of both the party and the military, prompting questions about whether the drive also serves to eliminate political rivals or punish perceived disloyalty.

Xi appears increasingly frustrated by what he views as insufficient discipline within the party, which wields absolute authority over the Chinese state and society. Earlier this year, he declared that the party must uproot “sick trees” and characterized the anti-corruption struggle as a “never-ending journey”.

A wave of purges has hollowed out the seven-member Central Military Commission, the supreme governing body of the People’s Liberation Army. Only two members remain: Xi himself and the military’s top anti-corruption official, Zhang Shengmin.

Zhang was elevated to the CCP Politburo this week, the party’s highest decision-making body, becoming its sole military representative.

The plenum also set the stage for the 21st Party Congress, held every five years and expected in the second half of 2027. Xi is widely anticipated to secure a fourth term as party leader, which would make him the longest-serving ruler of Communist China since Mao Zedong.

While the Central Committee and Politburo are slated for renewal at next year’s congress, many analysts warn that the breadth of recent purges has left few viable candidates for promotion.

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