In Chongqing, the former mayor Hu Henghua, who was investigated, and the former deputy mayor and director of the Public Security Bureau, Zhang Anjiang, who passed away, saw their positions filled on July 31st. Chongqing has been described as being under a curse due to the frequent downfall and mysterious deaths of high-ranking officials, with related positions considered “high-risk.”
On July 31st, the Standing Committee of the Chongqing Municipal People’s Congress announced the appointment of 58-year-old Chen Xinwu as the deputy mayor and acting mayor.
Chen Xinwu, originally from Huanggang, Hubei Province, has a long history of working in Hubei and has held positions such as mayor of Shiyan, member of the Hubei Provincial Party Committee, Secretary-General of the Provincial Party Committee, and Director of the Provincial Development and Reform Commission. In 2023, he was transferred to Chongqing as a member of the Municipal Party Committee and Secretary-General, becoming one of the key aides to Yuan Jiajun’s governance in Chongqing after Yuan took office. In 2024, he became the executive deputy mayor and deputy secretary of the municipal party committee, and in 2025, he was promoted to deputy secretary of the municipal party committee. This year, he stepped down from his positions as executive deputy mayor and deputy secretary of the municipal party committee and was appointed as the acting mayor.
According to the official appointment process of the Communist Party of China, Chen Xinwu will subsequently officially assume the position of Mayor of Chongqing.
On March 20th this year, the then mayor of Chongqing, Hu Henghua, was investigated, making him the “6th tiger” to fall from grace in Chongqing since the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China.
On July 31st, the Standing Committee of the Chongqing Municipal People’s Congress also appointed Tan Quan as the deputy mayor and director of the Public Security Bureau of Chongqing, and appointed Wu Shulin as the deputy mayor of Chongqing, while accepting the resignation of Ma Zhen from the position of deputy mayor of Chongqing.
Tan Quan, 55, from Xuanhan, Sichuan, previously served in the Beijing public security system; in October 2025, he was appointed Assistant Minister of the Ministry of Public Security of the Communist Party of China. After stepping down, he now assumes the role of deputy mayor and director of the Public Security Bureau of Chongqing.
Public reports show that on July 17th, a mountain collapse occurred in Pengshui County, Chongqing. Yuan Jiajun, Secretary of the Chongqing Municipal Party Committee, directed the operation via video link, with Tan Quan participating in his capacity as a city leader.
Another newly appointed deputy mayor of Chongqing, Wu Shulin, born in 1974, does not have public records regarding his hometown. Around 2014, Wu Shulin held the position of Director of the North China Economic Cooperation Development Office of the Regional Economic Bureau of the National Development and Reform Commission. He was later promoted to Deputy Director of the Regional Economic Bureau of the National Development and Reform Commission, Director of the Regional Coordination and Development Division of the National Development and Reform Commission; in July 2025, he still held the position of Director of the Regional Coordination and Development Division of the National Development and Reform Commission when conducting a special seminar on regional coordination development, until his recent appointment as deputy mayor of Chongqing.
The political turmoil in Chongqing continues. Prior to Hu Henghua’s downfall on March 20th, former Deputy Director of the Standing Committee of the Chongqing Municipal People’s Congress, Zheng Hong, former Deputy Mayor of Chongqing, Xiong Xue, former Secretary of the Chongqing Municipal Committee of Political and Legal Affairs, Lu Kehua, former Deputy Chairman of the Chongqing Municipal Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, Duan Chenggang, and former Deputy Mayor of Chongqing, Jiang Duntao, have all been investigated.
After Hu Henghua’s downfall, Luo Lin, a member of the Standing Committee of the Chongqing Municipal Party Committee, was also investigated in April. In May, Zhang Anjiang, deputy mayor and director of the Public Security Bureau of Chongqing, passed away due to illness, but online rumors suggested he died from jumping off a building, similar to the case of Ren Xuefeng, former Deputy Secretary of the Chongqing Municipal Committee who reportedly fell to his death in Beijing’s Jingxi Hotel in 2019.
Yuan Jiajun, Secretary of the Chongqing Municipal Party Committee, was implicated in military-corruption cases and the bribery case involving Sanan Optoelectronics. Li Xi, Secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, visited Chongqing in mid-July and delivered a speech, emphasizing the need to “prevent and rectify outstanding issues in performance evaluation,” leading to speculation about Yuan Jiajun’s unfavorable career prospects.
Hong Kong media “Ming Pao” previously stated that in the past decade, Chongqing seemed to be under a curse, becoming a “pit of thousands” for officials. This municipality has seen two Party Secretaries who were also members of the Political Bureau (Bo Xilai, Sun Zhengcai) being imprisoned, former Deputy Secretary of the Municipal Party Committee, Ren Xuefeng, falling from a building in Beijing, and three successive deputy mayors and directors of the Public Security Bureau, (Wang Lijun, He Ting, Deng Huilin) being investigated and removed.