Early life Tan was born and raised in
Chongqing, where he graduated from
Chongqing Normal University. During the
Down to the Countryside Movement, Tan worked as a
sent-down youth in
Changning County,
Sichuan. After the resumption of university entrance examination, Tan was admitted to
Chongqing Normal University and received a degree on political history. After college, he was assigned to
Yibin department of education, and later a provincial party-run school. He taught administrative management. He was given the title of "professor" in December 1992. In September 1995, Tan was appointed the Communist Party Secretary of
Pi County, a position he held until May 1998. He then worked as the head of the Chengdu propaganda department. In March 2001, Tan was transferred to
Guang'an as the Party Secretary, then he was transferred laterally to serve as party chief in
Mianyang in December 2004, where he served until March 2009.
Mianyang, Sichuan earthquake The
2008 Sichuan earthquake struck the province in May 2008. Mianyang was particularly hard hit. The region was given special attention by the central government; both General Secretary and President
Hu Jintao as well as Premier
Wen Jiabao visited the region in the aftermath of the earthquake. In a widely circulated photo, Tan was seen smiling in the entourage of the Premier. In a television broadcast, Tan was also seen smiling amid the debris. Tan's smiling during the most destructive earthquake to hit the country since 1976 generated significant criticism online; internet users dubbed him "Tan Xiaoxiao" (, literally "the laughing Tan") or the "Smiling Secretary" (). Tan responded to his critics during a media interview, "I don't think people know the truth... behind that incident. The General Secretary and the Premier were both visiting, I was greeting them. I was happy to see them, of course I wanted to smile." This was a promotion that elevated him from the prefecture level to a provincial-level leadership body. During a meeting of the Hainan government where Tan's transfer was announced, one of the provincial government leaders showered Tan with praise, remarking, "this marks a strengthening of talent in the Hainan provincial government." He was elected as
Vice-Governor of Hainan in January 2010. ==Downfall==