If the People’s Republic of China were a multi-party democracy, in which different politicians had to compete for power, at about this time the campaign trail would start to heat up. We are a mere six months at most away from when seeing either current leaders reappointed or new ones emerge. This being China, however, with a Communist Party still enjoying a monopoly on power, there is nothing as unseemly as a scramble between different figures. All we will observe over the coming months are the few sporadic signs of activity under the surface, while in a hundred different rooms and places, far away from sight, decisions are being made. The hidden horse-trading will culminate when the Standing Committee of the new Politburo walks out, sometime in October or November. Read more
