© AFP - Xi Jinping, 64, is certain to emerge with a second five-year term as the party's general secretary, with an even stronger mandate to accomplish his ambition of turning China into a global superpower with a world-class military by mid-century. -All eyes will be on who appears when the new standing committee trots out shortly before noon (0400 GMT) following the secret vote by the party's 204-member Central Committee.Analysts have been divided about who will fill out the committee's roster, and whether an heir apparent will appear. Xi himself was elevated to the committee in 2007 and succeeded Hu Jintao as general secretary and president five years later.Although the new members may not exercise much real power, the results -- which are largely expected to be guided by Xi's preferences -- will give some hints about his priorities and his attitude towards the party's norms.Even "Mao was not a one man show," said Mattias Stepan of Germany's Mercator Institute for China Studies. "Xi still needs capable people to stand next to him to promote his agenda. "At least one important figure will not make the cut.Xi's right-hand man Wang Qishan was not included on the list of Central Committee members who were elected by the congress Tuesday.Analysts had long expected the 69-year-old leader of the country's anti-corruption campaign might be kept on in defiance of the party's unofficial guidelines that cadres retire at 68, setting up Xi to stay on after he himself aged out.

Source: Egypt Today October 24, 2017 21:00 UTC