The office of Deputy Secretary-General of the State Council () functions as the deputy to the Secretary-General. Currently, seven people serve as deputy secretary-general. The Deputy Secretary-General can hold concurrent positions. In general the Deputy Secretary-General has equivalent administrative rank as a vice minister of the state, though occasionally some Deputy Secretaries General will hold the rank of a minister.
Historically, the Deputy Secretary-General has been a powerful position. Its title holders are often involved in the day-to-day management of government and has direct access to the state council's most important officeholders, including the Premier and Vice-Premiers. Many Deputy Secretaries-General are later promoted to higher positions such as leading a ministry or a province. Ma Kai and Wang Yang eventually ascended to become Vice-Premier.
List of officeholders Name(birth–death) Chinesecharacters Took office Left office Tenure Notes Ref. Qi Yanming(1907–1978) 齐燕铭 1 November 1954 March 1965 Tao Xijin(1908–1992) 陶希晋 August 1959 Chang Lifu(1912–2006) 常黎夫 February 1959 Zhang Ce(1911–1999) 张策 April 1958 Gong Zirong(1914–1995) 龚子荣 March 1965 Zeng Yifan(1907–1967) 曾一凡 March 1965 Yang Fangzhi(1908–2003) 杨放之 May 1966 Zhao Shougong(1912–1979) 赵守攻 August 1958 February 1965 Yang Dongchun(1900–1979) 杨东莼 August 1959 May 1966 Tong Xiaopeng(1914–2007) 童小鹏 Feng Xuan(1915–1986) 冯铉 March 1965 Gao Dengbang(1914–1993) 高登榜 May 1966 Lu Yuwen(1900–1968) 卢郁文 March 1965 Zhou Rongxin(1917–1976) 周荣鑫 October 1963 January 1965 Zhao Pengfei(1920–2005) 赵鹏飞 May 1966 Luo Qingchang(1918–2014) 罗青长 March 1965 Xu Ming(1919–1966) 许明 Zheng Siyuan(1914–2017) 郑思远 Purged during Cultural RevolutionVacant during 4th National People's Congress (1975-March 1979) Wu Qingtong(1924–2016) 吴庆彤 March 1979 November 1985 Zheng Siyuan(1914–2017) 郑思远 January 1983 (Second term) Feng Jiping(1911–1983) 冯基平 July 1979 April 1981 Li Liyin(1918–2010) 李力殷 August 1983 Du Xingyuan(1914–2011) 杜星垣 April 1980 March 1981 Song Yiping(1917–2005) 宋一平 May 1980 August 1983 Chen Chu(1917–1999) 陈楚 September 1980 December 1984 Mao Lianjue(1922–1985) 毛联珏 February 1982 Yuan Jinxiu(1922–1985) 袁晋修 27 March 1983 Wang Fulin(c. 1924–2003) 王伏林 August 1983 Tian Jiyun(born 1929) 田纪云 March 1981 20 June 1983 Later became Vice-Premier Liu Zhihan(1914–2014) 刘志汉 May 1981 August 1983 Gu Ming(1919–2008) 顾明 August 1981 January 1985 Ma Hong(1920–2007) 马洪 April 1982 August 1983 Zhou Shaozheng(1926–2007) 周绍铮 May 1982 August 1983 Li Hao(born 1926) 李灏 August 1983 August 1985 Ai Zhisheng(1928–1997) 艾知生 April 1985 Zhang Wenshou(1926–2009) 张文寿 December 1984 3 May 1988 Zhang Jingyuan(born ?) 张镜源 February 1986 Liu Suinian(1929–2002) 柳随年 August 1985 January 1986 Yan Ying(born 1957) 阎颖 July 1990 Wang Shuming(1933–2013) 王书明 November 1985 June 1993 Bai Meiqing(born 1931) 白美清 December 1985 July 1990 Li Chang'an(born 1935) 李昌安 12 June 1987 July 1993 Chang Jie(born 1929) 常捷 July 1987 November 1990 He Chunlin(born 1933) 何椿霖 3 May 1988 March 1998 Liu Zhongde(1933–2012) 刘忠德 July 1990 Later became Minister of Culture Li Shizhong(born ?) 李世忠 February 1995 Xi Dehua(1933–2013) 席德华 May 1995 An Chengxin(1939–2012) 安成信 May 1993 Liu Zhongli(born 1934) 刘仲藜 July 1990 4 September 1992 Later became Minister of Finance Xu Zhijian(born 1935) 徐志坚 10 December 1996 Liu Jimin(born 1938) 刘济民 June 1993 March 1998 Li Shuwen(born 1940) 李树文 July 1993 March 1998 Zhang Kezhi(1941–2004) 张克智 Liu Qibao(born 1953) 刘奇葆 July 1994 March 1998 Later became Head of the Propaganda Department of the Communist Party Zhang Zuoji(1945–2021) 张左己 November 1994 18 March 1998 Later became Governor of Heilongjiang province Jin Renqing(born 1944) 金人庆 May 1995 November 1995 Later became Minister of Finance Yang Jingyu(born 1936) 杨景宇 March 1998 Zhou Zhengqing(born 1935) 周正庆 June 1995 March 1998 Shi Xiushi(born 1942) 石秀诗 September 1996 December 2000 Cui Zhanfu(born 1942) 崔占福 January 2003 Ma Kai(born 1946) 马凯 March 1998 March 2003 Later became Vice-Premier Xu Rongkai(born 1942) 徐荣凯 June 2001 Xu Shaoshi(born 1951) 徐绍史 9 January 2001 April 2007 Later became Chairman of the National Development and Reform Commission You Quan(born 1954) 尤权 January 2001 December 2006 Later became party chief of Fujian province Gao Qiang(born 1944) 高强 July 2001 April 2003 Later became Minister of Health Jiao Huancheng(born 1949) 焦焕成 July 2002 October 2015 Director of the General Administration for State Organs Wang Yang(born 1955) 汪洋 March 2003 5 January 2006 Later became Vice-Premier Chen Jinyu(born 1946) 陈进玉 1 May 2003 30 December 2006 Li Shishi(born 1953) 李适时 31 December 2003 28 February 2008 Zhang Yong(born 1953) 张勇 April 2015 Zhang Ping(born 1946) 张平 5 January 2006 18 March 2008 Later became Chairman of the National Development and Reform Commission Xiang Zhaolun(born 1959) 项兆伦 30 December 2006 April 2013 Chief of the Office of the Premier Lou Jiwei(born 1950) 楼继伟 March 2007 September 2007 Later became Minister of Finance Wang Yongqing(born 1959) 汪永清 14 March 2008 3 April 2018 You Quan(born 1954) 尤权 18 March 2008 18 December 2012 (second term) Wang Yong(born 1955) 王勇 21 September 2008 Later became Chairman of the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission Qiu Xiaoxiong(born 1955) 丘小雄 15 June 2011 Bi Jingquan(born 1955) 毕井泉 April 2015 Wang Xuejun(born 1952) 王学军 27 July 2008 March 2013 Later became governor, then party chief of Anhui province Xiao Yaqing(born 1959) 肖亚庆 16 February 2009 February 2016 Chief of Staff to Vice-Premier Ma Kai Ding Xuedong(born 1960) 丁学东 June 2010 23 July 2013 Chief of staff to Vice-Premier Hui LiangyuLater became chairman and CEO of the China Investment Corporation Jiang Xiaojuan(born 1957) 江小涓 15 June 2011 22 June 2018 Chief of staff to Vice-Premier Liu Yandong Xiao Jie(born 1957) 肖捷 March 2013 November 2016 Executive Deputy Secretary-General (minister-level)Chief of staff to Premier Li KeqiangLater became Minister of Finance Ding Xiangyang(born 1959) 丁向阳 8 April 2021 Chief of staff to Vice-Premier Zhang Gaoli, then to Vice-Premier Han Zheng Shu Xiaoqin(born 1959) 舒晓琴 April 2013 10 April 2020 Director of the Bureau of Letters and CallsWang zhongwei(born 1955) September 2015 Jiang Zelin(born 1959) 江泽林 April 2015 February 2018 Chief of staff to Vice-Premier Wang Yang Meng Yang(born ?) 孟杨 May 2015 Incumbent Director of the First Secretarial Department Peng Shujie(born 1963) 彭树杰 December 20154 July 2023 Ding Xuedong(born 1960) 丁学东 March 2017 (Second term)Executive Deputy Secretary-General (minister-level) since May 2018Chief of staff to Executive Vice Premier Han Zheng, then to Executive Vice Premier Ding Xuexiang Li Baorong(born 1958) 李宝荣 April 2017 June 2022 Xiao Jie(born 1957)肖捷 2 November 2017 19 March 2018 (Second term) Lu Junhua(born 1962) 陆俊华 June 2018 19 August 2021 Gao Yu [zh](born 1961) 10 October 2019 30 November 2021 (born 1962) 10 April 2020 4 July 2023 Also the director of National Public Complaints and Proposals Administration Liu Jianbo(birth year unclear) 20 May 2021Incumbent Guo Wei(birth year unclear) 22 July 2021 (born 1966) 30 November 2021 Wang Zhijun(born 1965)4 July 2023 Executive Deputy Secretary-General (minister-level)Chief of staff to Executive Vice Premier Ding Xuexiang Wang Yonghong(born 1969) Also the director of National Government Offices Administration Xu Shouben(born 1969) 30 August 2023
References