Central Military Commission

Rule Changes

Hit hardest by this round: 16 of 33 expulsions were military

Of the 376 people named to China's Central Committee in 2022, 279 attended this week's fifth plenum. The other 97 seats were empty. Party media confirmed 33 of them had been formally expelled, the largest single round of removals at such a meeting in modern Chinese history.

Updated Oct 31

Force in Play

As of May 2026: Decimated by purges; only Xi and Zhang Shengmin remain of nine-member body

Xi Jinping appointed all seven members of China's Central Military Commission in 2022. By February 2026, only two remained: Xi and anti-corruption chief Zhang Shengmin. The investigation of Zhang Youxia, Xi's childhood friend and the PLA's most senior combat-experienced officer, marks the most dramatic purge of China's military leadership since the Cultural Revolution.

Updated May 23