The 18th National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party was held November 8–14, 2012 at the Great Hall of the People. Due to term limits and age restrictions, seven of the nine members of the powerful Politburo Standing Committee (PSC) retired during the Congress, including Hu Jintao, who was replaced by Xi Jinping as General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party. The Congress elected the 18th Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party, and saw the number of Politburo Standing Committee seats reduced from nine to seven.
The seven PSC members elected during the Congress were Xi Jinping, Li Keqiang, Zhang Dejiang, Yu Zhengsheng, Liu Yunshan, Wang Qishan and Zhang Gaoli. Five of these were identified as associates or having benefited from the patronage of former CCP general secretaryJiang Zemin, who reportedly exerted considerable influence in shaping the composition of the new Standing Committee. Only Li Keqiang and Liu Yunshan are considered to be members of the tuanpai.
