Daily Times

Xi Jinping was elected to a record third five-year term as China’s President on Friday.

The appointment by China’s parliament comes after Xi was re-elected as Chairman of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) for another five years in October.

Since then, the 69-year-old Xi has faced widespread criticism for his zero-COVID policy, as well as the deaths of countless people as a result of its abandonment.

After the constitution was changed to remove the traditional two-term limit for the presidency, as many as 2,952 members of the National People’s Congress (NPC) voted unanimously for Xi Jinping. No one voted against him.

There were no candidate lists distributed, and Xi and those who won other positions were thought to have run unopposed.

Xi was also unanimously named commander of the two million-member People’s Liberation Army.

Since taking power in 2012, 69-year-old Xi has sidelined any potential challengers and filled the party with his supporters, turning himself into China’s most powerful leader since Mao Zedong.

In other NPC votes, Han Zheng, 68, was elected vice president, and Zhao Leji, 66, was elected parliament chair. Both men were members of Xi’s previous team of Politburo Standing Committee party leaders.

On Monday, the final day of the annual parliamentary session, Xi will deliver a speech, while Li will hold a press conference.