China Expels Record 33 Officials at Communist Party Plenum

China's Communist Party confirmed on Thursday, October 29, 2026, that a record 33 members had been expelled from the party at its fifth plenum. A plenum is a meeting of the party's Central Committee, the large body of senior members that convenes periodically to set policy and make personnel decisions. Reuters reported the confirmation, and the plenum concluded the same day.

Among those expelled was Ma Xingrui, a former member of the Politburo, the party's top decision-making body, who had served as party secretary for Xinjiang, a region in western China. The Guardian also reported that Zhang Youxia, once the second-in-command in China's military hierarchy, was expelled at the plenum.

Attendance was also unusually low. According to The Guardian, only 279 full and alternate members of the Central Committee attended, compared with the 376 named as members in 2022. More than a quarter of the 2022 cohort were absent, and the newspaper described the plenum as having the highest number of empty chairs in modern Chinese history.

The changes reached the military leadership. The seven-member Central Military Commission, which oversees China's armed forces, now has two members: Xi Jinping and Zhang Shengmin. Zhang Shengmin was promoted to the Politburo during the plenum week, and he is now the only military member of that senior body.

The plenum's stated theme was party governance. It also laid the groundwork for the 21st Party Congress, expected in the second half of 2027, the gathering at which leadership posts are formally decided. Xi Jinping is expected to secure a fourth term as party leader at that congress, which would make him the longest-serving ruler of Communist China since Mao Zedong, according to The Guardian.