China’s parliament on Saturday approved the appointment of Li Qiang as the new prime minister at the annual meeting of the parliament.
Li Qiang received 2,936 votes in favor, 3 once morest, and 8 abstentions.
Li Qiang, the former head of the Communist Party of Shanghai, will replace Li Keqiang, who will retire during the session of the National People’s Congress (China’s national legislature) that ends Monday, following serving two five-year terms.
Who is Li Qiang?
- Chinese President Xi Jinping had nominated Li Qiang for the position earlier, with the responsibility of running the world’s second largest economy.
- Li Qiang, 63, is a close ally of the president.
- He served as Xi’s chief of staff between 2004 and 2007 when Xi was party secretary in east China’s Zhejiang Province.
- Li Qiang is a former Shanghai Communist Party official whose image was somewhat damaged in the spring during the chaotic lockdown in his city.
