The Chinese Communist Party’s Central Commission for Discipline Inspection and the Central Organization Department recently issued a joint notice titled “Concerning Strengthening Disciplinary Measures for Succession and Enhancing Supervision of Succession Atmosphere,” proposing the so-called “Ten Strict Prohibitions.” This comes as provinces, cities, counties, and town party committees are set to enter a new round of succession cycles starting in 2026.
According to an informed source within the CCP, the focus on “drawing lines” before the local party committee succession is not merely to clean up the succession atmosphere, but rather to clear the field in advance for a new round of power integration. Local party committees hold key personnel and resource allocation rights, tightening the path for cadre advancement in advance of the 21st Party Congress to solidify the political structure and ensure absolute loyalty to the top leadership, suppressing any local forces that may potentially form relatively independent spaces.
The official CCP media Xinhua later reprinted the notice, outlining the “Ten Strict Prohibitions,” including prohibiting forming cliques, engaging in speculation and colluding for personal gain, vote-buying, exchanging official positions for personal gain, improper interference, favoritism, cronyism, and improper personnel arrangements, as well as interfering with succession, emphasizing a “zero-tolerance” approach to violations of succession standards.
From the “Ten Strict Prohibitions” to recent calls for local officials to relearn the so-called “correct view of political achievements,” the CCP has been consistently conducting purification actions. Mr. Liang pointed out that under the highly centralized power structure, local party committees not only undertake administrative functions but also serve as crucial nodes for power transmission. Once stable interest networks or faction structures form at the local level, direct control over the cadre system by the top level could be weakened.
Mr. Liang told reporters, “As local party committee elections approach, if a solid inner circle is formed locally, there may be a de facto self-replication of personnel. Through disciplined high-pressure reshaping of the personnel order, it essentially compresses the operational space at the local level further concentrating power upward.”
A retired former CCP discipline inspection official, Mr. Wang from Lu’an City, Anhui province, told reporters that if outsiders only understand the “Ten Strict Prohibitions” in the notice from the perspectives of anti-corruption or integrity, they would overlook its true intentions. He said, “You outsiders don’t know, many officials within the party are restless, afraid of being reported and imprisoned. Where is there no clique in corrupt places? These ‘Ten Strict Prohibitions’ are simply a matter of life and death. Xi Jinping wants to replace grassroots party members and cadres. He isn’t afraid of having no one to work for him either.”
Another CCP source close to the local decision-making level, Mr. Tang Jian (pseudonym), said, “The top leadership is most worried not only about open resistance but also about personnel alliances not approved by the central government. In recent years, both high and low-ranking officials who have fallen from grace, while officially charged with bribery, their reports often emphasize ‘forming factions’ and ‘joining gangs.’ The demand for loyalty to the central authority has now descended to the township government level.”
Public opinion believes that against the backdrop of declining financial revenue and tightening resources for those in power in the CCP, local party committees are more likely to consolidate existing interests through personnel alliances to bind projects and fund allocation. In response, Tang Jian candidly stated, “The less resources available, the more evident the groupings become. The ‘Ten Strict Prohibitions’ are drawing lines in advance to prevent the formation of closed cycles of resources and personnel. However, grassroots party members are starting to increasingly question why Beijing’s top leadership doesn’t first impose self-restraint.”
The notice also calls for a “strike as soon as violations appear” approach to disciplinary issues and emphasizes “holding leadership responsible at all levels.” Analysts point out that this escalating accountability mechanism does not enhance institutional transparency but rather creates a high-pressure environment by amplifying political risks, keeping local officials highly compliant in uncertainty, thereby further squeezing local autonomy.