China has only one chairman, and that is Chairman Mao Zedong. Mao served as chairman of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China. The position was so powerful that party leaders did away with the title within years of Mao’s death in 1976. But is the title truly gone forever? Maybe not. On June 30, at a military parade in Hong Kong, President Xi Jinping met troops from the People’s Liberation Army (PLA). The troops responded to greetings from Xi by shouting, “Greetings, Chairman.” The title was heard again on July 30, during a military parade to mark the 90th anniversary of the PLA in Inner Mongolia. At that event, troops also responded to Xi’s greetings by saying, “Greetings, Chairman.” Currently, Xi is both general secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China as well as chairman of the Central Military Commission.
