Zhou Qiang is a politician of the People's Republic of China

People's Republic of China

China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...

. He currently serves as the Party chief of the Communist Party of China

Communist Party of China

The Communist Party of China , also known as the Chinese Communist Party , is the founding and ruling political party of the People's Republic of China...

 (CPC) Hunan committee, first-in-charge of the central Chinese province. He served as the province's governor between 2007 and 2010. Zhou's ascendancy to the party secretary position in Hunan makes him China's third youngest provincial party secretary. His rise to power is comparable to that of President Hu Jintao

Hu Jintao

Hu Jintao is the current Paramount Leader of the People's Republic of China. He has held the titles of General Secretary of the Communist Party of China since 2002, President of the People's Republic of China since 2003, and Chairman of the Central Military Commission since 2004, succeeding Jiang...

 and Vice-Premier Li Keqiang

Li Keqiang

Li Keqiang is the First-ranking Vice-Premier and deputy Party secretary of the State Council of the People's Republic of China, the seventh ranked member of the Politburo Standing Committee, the People's Republic of China's de facto highest decision-making body...

; all three men have background

Tuanpai

Tuanpai , is a term used by political observers to represent cadres and government officials in the Communist Party of China who originated from the Communist Youth League. The term is also used to represent Hu Jintao and his group of populist associates and other political allies...

 in the Communist Youth League of China.

Life and career

Born in Huangmei County, Hubei Province, Zhou has obtained a postgraduate degree, and is a member of the Communist Party of China (CPC). He started working in August 1976. In November 1995, he was elected to be the secretary of the central secretariat of the Chinese Communist Youth League (CYL) at the 4th plenary session of the 13th CYL central committee. In June 1998, he was elevated to first secretary of the CYL central secretariat, and was re-elected in July 2003. In September 2006, Zhou was appointed as a standing committee member and vice secretary of the CPC Hunan committee. On September 30, he became the acting governor of Hunan, appointed by the standing committee of the 10th Hunan People's Congress. In December 2006, he resigned as the first secretary of the central secretariat of the CYL. On February 3, 2007, Zhou was confirmed as the governor of Hunan, and was re-elected on January 24, 2008. On April 25, 2010 he was appointed Secretary of the Hunan CPC Committee (and presumably also Chairman of the Hunan People's Congress Standing Committee). On November 23, 2011, Zhou was elected secretary of the Hunan Provincial Committee of the CPC.

Zhou was previously a member of the 16th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China

16th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China

The 16th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China was in session from 2002 to 2007. It held seven plenary sessions.It elected the 16th Politburo of the Communist Party of China in 2002.-Brief chronology:#1st Plenary Session...

, and is a current member of the 17th Central Committee

17th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China

The 17th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China is in session from 2007 to 2012.It elected the 17th Politburo of the Communist Party of China in 2007.-Chronology:#1st Plenary Session#*Date: October 22, 2007#*Location: Beijing...

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