He Weidong

He was born in Nanping, Fujian, with ancestry was in the town of Xuhe, in Dongtai, Jiangsu in May 1957. In 1981 he graduated from PLA Nanjing Army Command College. In 2001 he entered the National University of Defense Technology. ==Military career==

He enlisted in the People's Liberation Army (PLA) in December 1972 after middle school. He was Commander of Jiangsu Military District in July 2013 and Shanghai Garrison Command in March 2014. In February 2015 he succeeded Zhu Shengling as a member of the Standing Committee of the Shanghai Municipal Committee of the Chinese Communist Party. In July 2016 he was transferred to Deputy Commander of the Western Theater Command and Commander of the Western Theater Command Ground Force. On February 24, 2018, he was elected as a deputy to the 13th National People's Congress. In September 2019, he was promoted to become Commander of the Eastern Theater Command, replacing Liu Yuejun. Vice chairman of the Central Military Commission In October 2022, Zhang was named as a member of the Politburo of the Chinese Communist Party and the second-ranking vice chairman of the CCP Central Military Commission. He also became the vice chairman of the state CMC in March 2023. In January 2024, at the annual meeting of the disciplinary inspectors of the PLA, He said the military should "adhere to a strict tone, use stricter standards to scrutinize the key few, and show determination to get to the bottom of long-standing [corruption] problems". He also called on the CMC Commission for Discipline Inspection to maintain loyalty and support to CCP General Secretary Xi Jinping. In March, during a discussion with a PLA delegation, He called on crackdowns on "fake combat capabilities". == Removal from the CCP ==

In April 2025, the Financial Times reported that he had been arrested, placed under anti-corruption investigations and was removed from his post as vice chairman of the Central Military Commission. At the funeral of the former Vice Chairman of the Central Military Commission Xu Qiliang on 7 June 2025, no wreath from him was present, sparking speculation on whether he was removed from his post. On 17 October 2025, the Ministry of National Defense announced that he was expelled from the CCP and the PLA for "serious violations of discipline and law". He was replaced by Zhang Shengmin. His removal as the first-ranked CMC Vice Chairman was the first since Zhao Ziyang, also a CCP General Secretary, after the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests and massacre. He, along with eight other senior military officials, were investigated and punished for "serious violations of party, discipline, and law" and "suspected of major duty-related crimes". A spokesperson for the Defense Ministry stated that the violations involved "exceptionally large amounts of money" and were of an "extremely serious nature and with extremely negative impacts". Reports indicated that Weidong's expulsion was also linked to accusations of political disloyalty and personal misconduct described by official sources as "loss of chastity," suggesting violations of party discipline beyond financial corruption. On 27 December 2025, Weidong was disqualified as a deputy to the National People's Congress along four other military officers including He Hongjun, Wang Peng, Wang Renhua and Zhang Hongbing. His removal, along with that of Miao Hua, is believed to be a part of factional struggles within the CCP. Weidong belonged to Xi Jinping's "Fujian clique", while Zhang Youxia led the "Shaanxi clique". The removal of He and Miao from the CMC during the spring and summer of 2025, is believed to be a massive shakeup in the balance of power by Zhang. Zhang himself fell from power in January 2026, when Xi arrested him and put him under investigation for corruption. ==See also==