Party and state leaders

"Party and state leaders" (Chinese: 党和国家领导人; Vietnamese: Lãnh đạo chủ chốt của Đảng và Nhà nước) is a governmental and political jargon currently used in political discourse of China, and a lesser extent of Vietnam, in reference to specific senior political leaders in those countries. The jargon is used in In both formal and colloquial contexts, and referred to a defined group of leaders in those countries.

In Chinese political discourse, "party and state leaders" refer to a limited group of individuals currently holding approximately 100 specific positions in the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and the Government of the People's Republic of China (PRC) that are classified into the top two ranks in the Civil service of China:^[1][2]

• National-level principals, or colloquially "national leaders" (Chinese: 国家级正职 or 正国级)
• National-level deputies, or colloquially "national deputy-level leaders" (Chinese: 国家级副职 or 副国级)

In Vietnamese political discourse the term refers to individuals holding, as of September 2025, five specific offices. While it remain a formal designation in the Government of Vietnam, the term has been gradually replaced by the colloquial term four pillars in day-to-day use since the early 2000s, which was further formally updated to the five pillars in September 2025.^[3]

The term has also been used in the past in China and Vietnam in references to top political leaders of the former Soviet Union.

The senior leaders of the following institutions qualify as party and state leaders:^[4]

• Senior leaders of the three key organs of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP)
  • Central Committee
    • General Secretary of the Central Committee
    • Politburo Standing Committee – members
    • Politburo – members and alternate members
    • Secretariat – secretaries
  • Central Military Commission (of the CPP) – Chair and Vice Chairs
  • Central Commission for Discipline Inspection – Secretary
• Senior leaders of the seven key institutions of the People's Republic of China (PRC)
  • National People's Congress – Chair, Vice Chairs of the Standing Committee
  • Presidency – President, Vice President
  • State Council – Premier, Vice Premiers, State Councilors
  • Central Military Commission (of the government) – Chair and Vice Chairs (rank: General/Admiral/Air Force General)
  • National Supervisory Commission – Director (rank: Censor-General)
  • Supreme People's Court – President (rank: Chief Justice)
  • Supreme People's Procuratorate – Procurator-General (rank: Chief Procurator)
• Senior leaders of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference
  • National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference – Chair, Vice Chairs

Currently, the officeholders of eight titles are qualified as national-level principals and the holder of ten additional titles are qualified as national-level deputies. Many of the titles have multiple positions, and a number of individuals hold multiple positions on the list. Approximately 70 individuals currently formally qualified as party and state leaders, holding among them approximately 100 specific positions. Of the office holders, 6 are women, 19 are not official members of the CCP.

In addition to the holders of the above office, historically, members of the standing committee of the Central Advisory Commission (existed between 1982 and 1992) were considered Party and State leaders. The 20 military leaders who were conferred titles of "Marshal of the People's Republic" and "Grand General of the People's Liberation Army" in 1955 were all considered former Party and State leaders when they were alive.

• Order of precedence in China
• List of leaders of the People's Republic of China
• List of current Chinese provincial leaders