Chen Jining: the Imperial graduate tipped to be in the race for Xi's successor

Following major elections across the West and several transfers of power, China's leadership post-Xi Jinping is a topic gaining greater prominence. Now 71 and in the middle of his third five-year term in power, the topic of his successor has become more prescient as he heads towards a fourth term in power, which when it ends in 2032 would make the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) leader 79 years old. Further pressure following the death of former Chinese Premier and second in command Li Keqiang at 68 in 2023, means China specialists have begun to make predictions for the next leader of the communist state.

Among the frontrunners is Chen Jining, now Party Secretary of Shanghai and member of the CCP's politburo. Studying his undergraduate and master's in civil and environmental engineering at the elite Tsinghua University, Chen began doctoral studies at Imperial in 1989, graduating with a PhD in civil engineering in 1993. He stayed for his postdoctoral studies and as a researcher until 1997.

Returning to China in 1998, Chen spent the next 17 years at Tsinghua University, rising through the ranks of the Department of Environmental Engineering, before joining the executive body of Tsinghua as Vice President in 2006. In 2012 Chen became the President until his appointment as Minister of Environmental Protection in January 2015. Following his stint as minister, he was appointed as acting mayor of Beijing in 2017 until 2022, where he was promoted to Party Secretary in Shanghai.

According to Wu Guoguang, a former advisor to Chinese Premier Zhao Ziyang and senior fellow of the Asia Society Policy Institute, Chen's background in STEM and his association with Tsinghua University, Xi's own alma mater, make him a strong contender as the party leader has a record of installing similar figures into leadership roles.