The upcoming 21st National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), concerning the issue of Xi Jinping’s re-election, is generally expected to take place in the autumn of 2027. In the first half of this year, 74 provincial-level and higher-ranking officials across China were disciplined, doubling compared to the same period last year. The personnel cleansing in the CCP is accelerating, with some scholars pointing to a brewing upheaval dubbed as the “official anger tide.”
According to data from the CCP Central Commission for Discipline Inspection and the National Supervisory Commission on July 25, during the first half of 2026, a total of 538,000 cases were filed by disciplinary and supervisory agencies nationwide, showing a 3.3% increase compared to the same period last year when there were 521,000 cases.
The number of cases involving provincial-level and higher-ranking officials increased by 16.3% from 43 individuals last year to 50 individuals this year. At the bureau level, the number rose from 2,335 individuals last year to 2,773 individuals this year, marking an 18.8% increase.
In the first half of the year, 74 provincial-level and higher-ranking officials were disciplined, more than doubling the number from the same period last year.
Legal expert Yuan Hongbing, who understands the Chinese political situation, told Epoch Times that during Xi Jinping’s more than a decade in power, he has used the guise of anti-corruption to conduct rounds of brutal internal purges within the party, surpassing the cruelty of Stalin in the Soviet era. The sheer number of officials punished, along with their various connections and proxies, amounts to a significant figure.
Yuan Hongbing stated that Xi Jinping’s main aim in conducting these extensive purges is to achieve absolute personal dictatorship. He aims to become a communist emperor, ruling for life and becoming the holder of all state power. Consequently, a glaring and irreconcilable conflict arises between Xi Jinping and the overall CCP officials in their power and interest struggles. Xi employs the vast intelligence apparatus at his disposal to conduct massive purges and internal cleansings against officials who oppose his personal dictatorship.
However, Yuan Hongbing noted that it is precisely for this reason that Xi Jinping now finds himself in a situation where he is widely mistrusted and alienated, as “not only are officials agitated, it can be said that they are furious towards him.”
Yuan Hongbing revealed that many within the CCP system are secretly networking, preparing to launch a decisive blow against Xi Jinping at the opportune moment.
He stated that outwardly these individuals may appear to be collectively lying low and neglecting their duties, but deep down they are all planning their own paths and even plotting thorough resistance movements, especially internal political events, to completely overturn Xi Jinping’s personal dictatorship.
Independent commentator Du Zheng recently wrote in the Taiwan media “Up Media” that there are many anti-communist elements lurking within the CCP. Officials may superficially obey, but many have transitioned from anti-Xi sentiments to anti-communism, and some mid-level officials are involved in secret anti-communist circles. An informant disclosed that a vice director-level official from a certain province who was recently ousted privately remarked, “We may witness the fall of the Chinese Communist Party in our lifetime!”
Du Zheng stated that the success of anti-communist elements infiltrating the CCP system is attributed to the tradition of double-faced behavior cultivated by the CCP over the years—under the harsh authoritarian political environment, people are compelled to outwardly submit for survival while accumulating discontent and waiting for an opportunity to strike back. These hidden anti-communist figures within the CCP system make Xi Jinping’s rule under the CCP banner precarious.
The Hong Kong media “Sing Tao Daily” previously analyzed that from the military to local governments, from current officials to retirees, and from ministries to central enterprises, the number of “ousted officials in the CCP has shown an explosive growth this year,” with a high probability of setting a new record within the year.
The report pointed out that the CCP Central Commission for Discipline Inspection emphasized in its early-year full meeting that the “anti-corruption struggle remains severe and complex” and that they need to “maintain an unwavering high-pressure stance.” The military newspaper stressed that “the remaining corruption has not been thoroughly cleared,” with some high-ranking officials seemingly “queuing up” to be dealt with.
Central News Agency believes that the hastening personnel cleansing in the officialdom might be related to the upcoming 21st National Congress of the CCP next autumn.
Yuan Hongbing expressed that these officials were the political foundation of the CCP’s tyranny, and Xi Jinping’s repeated massive purges, with millions being purged, have generated unprecedented levels of anger and resentment. If Xi continues to rule at the 21st Congress and solidify his lifetime leadership, it marks the beginning of his collapse, where “his greatest possibility is to meet his end like Romania’s dictator Ceausescu, in the fire of nationwide resistance and people’s uprising.”