China's 24-member Politburo, appointed in October 2022, comprises exclusively Han Chinese men — and, following three high-profile expulsions, has since shrunk to 21 members with no greater ethnic diversity, according to a report by Myanmar-based outlet The Irrawaddy. The development marks the first time in 25 years that the body has included no women and no representative from any of China's 55 officially recognised ethnic minority groups.

The Gap Between Law and Practice

Under China's ethnic autonomy law, the head-of-government post in autonomous regions is formally reserved for a member of the local ethnic minority. However, the report notes that the more consequential party secretary position has historically been held by a Han Chinese official — a structural arrangement that concentrates real authority outside minority hands.

Ethnic minorities have reportedly accounted for roughly 10 to 11 per cent of full and alternate Central Committee members for decades, yet the majority of those representatives have remained in the less influential alternate tier, according to the report.

A Barrier That Is Unwritten but Real

The report acknowledges that the exclusion is not codified. 'No ethnic minority official has ever joined the Politburo Standing Committee. A handful reached the wider Politburo: Zhuang General Wei Guoqing and Mongolian leader Ulanhu served there during the Mao and early reform years; Hui Liangyu later served in the body and became a Vice Premier. Those cases show the barrier isn't formal, but they also highlight how rarely it has been crossed,' the outlet noted.

The report argues that while precedent exists, it is the exception rather than the norm — and that recent trends suggest the exception is becoming rarer still.

Xi Jinping's Ethnic Policy Shift

According to the report, ethnic policy under Chinese President Xi Jinping has increasingly centred on 'forging a strong sense of community for the Chinese nation.' At the 2021 Central Ethnic Work Conference, Xi reportedly linked the standards for officials to their firm backing of centralised party leadership and commitment to his national community agenda.

Critics argue this approach prioritises political cohesion, a shared national identity, and security considerations over the representation of distinct ethnic communities — a significant departure from the pluralist rhetoric that characterised earlier decades.

Three Expulsions Narrow the Body Further

The Politburo's composition has grown more concentrated since October 2022. In October 2025, the party expelled Central Military Commission Vice Chairman He Weidong. Former Xinjiang Party Secretary Ma Xingrui followed in July 2026, and top general Zhang Youxia was removed the following month. Official notices accused all three of serious violations; the notice on Zhang additionally alleged disloyalty, 'faction-building', and a 'remarkably large number of bribes,' according to the report.

Their removal leaves an active Politburo of 21 members — all Han Chinese — further narrowing an already exclusive body.

What This Signals About Power Under Xi

The Irrawaddy report concludes that diversity within China's political system exists primarily at lower levels, often enforced through quotas and administrative rules, but 'disappears where the most consequential decisions are made.' It notes that public records do not reveal the internal vetting or bargaining behind elite appointments, making it difficult to draw a direct causal line between ethnic policy and Politburo composition — though the report argues the two are consistent.

As Xi Jinping consolidates authority heading into the next party cycle, the trajectory of minority representation at the apex of Chinese politics remains a closely watched indicator of how the party balances administrative diversity with centralised control.