Sharing @edwardwhitenz's excellent Fifth Plenum preview in @FT. Glad to be quoted.
Most China watchers think a revived Party chairmanship is very unlikely. I'm not so sure.
Deng and Jiang ruled through bargains among elders and factions, so they could step back safely. Xi rules by fear. He has taken down even Zhang Youxia, Miao Hua and Zhong Shaojun, his own trusted generals who seemed untouchable. A ruler like this cannot let go.
And power ends at death. Only Mao got around that. Deng, twice purged by Mao, still would not repudiate him, because repudiating Mao meant repudiating the Party itself.
That is the height Xi needs. Short of it, he will be torn down after he dies.
https://t.co/nt2iKawY2h