After the start of the
Cultural Revolution in 1966, Liu Shaoqi, the state chairman appointed by the constitution, was imprisoned. After Liu Shaoqi was dismissed in 1968, the position of state chairman became vacant, and the original constitutional system fell to the wayside. In 1970, Mao Zedong proposed to
abolish the position of state chairman, which was opposed by many leaders of the CCP, leaving the constitutional amendment was deadlocked. In 1971, after the
Lin Biao incident, the
abolition of the state chairman became a foregone conclusion, and the work of constitutional amendment made some progress. On 17 January 1975, at the first session of the
4th National People's Congress, the second constitution was formally adopted, which abolished the positions of state chairman and vice chairman. The 1975 constitution remained in effect for about three years due to the death of
Mao Zedong and the rise of
Hua Guofeng the following year, the latter of whom ordered its replacement with
a new document to solidify his position as Mao's successor. It was thus the shortest-lived constitution in the
history of the People's Republic of China. == Content ==