Liu Yandong, China’s former vice premier and one of the country’s most prominent female political leaders during her decades-long career, died on Wednesday in Beijing at the age of 80 following an illness, according to state-run media reports.
State media outlets announced the passing of the former state councilor, noting that she died at 2:53 p.m. local time. As a senior figure within the Chinese Communist Party, her political trajectory spanned key portfolios including education, science and technology, healthcare, and united front work.
Rise Through the Party Ranks and Tsinghua Studies
Born in Nantong, Jiangsu province, in November 1945, Liu joined the Chinese Communist Party in July 1964. She studied engineering chemistry at Tsinghua University from 1964 to 1970 and later earned a doctorate in law from Jilin University. Following her university studies, she spent nearly a decade in the country’s industrial system, starting as a laborer and rising to become deputy secretary of the party committee at a state-owned chemical factory.
Her father, Liu Ruilong, served as China’s former vice minister of agriculture. In the 1980s, Liu joined the Central Committee Secretariat of the Communist Youth League, holding senior positions during the decade. In 1991, she entered the Central United Front Work Department—a key party body responsible for building relationships with groups outside the CCP—subsequently serving as its deputy head and later as its head.
She advanced to become a member of the Political Bureau of the 17th and 18th Central Committees of the Communist Party of China, marking a significant milestone in her political career after her appointment at the party congress in late 2007. She took office as a state councilor in 2008 and subsequently served as vice premier of the State Council from 2013 to 2018 under Premier Li Keqiang. Her diplomatic engagements included leading U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry on a tour of the Forbidden City’s Qianlong Garden in Beijing on June 5, 2016, as well as participating in bilateral discussions at the U.S. State Department in Washington in June 2015.
Official Statements Commend Her Leadership in Public Health and Science
Official statements released following her death commended her extensive service across social and administrative sectors.
Former Chinese Vice Premier Liu Yandong died of illness in Beijing on Oct. 28, aged 81, according to Xinhua’s official obituary. pic.twitter.com/oOSdIlc7Vj
an excellent Party member, a time-tested and loyal communist fighter, and an outstanding leader in the CPC’s united front work and in the fields of education, science and technology, health, and children and women work in China.
Official Statement
During her tenure as vice premier from 2013 to 2018, she oversaw policies concerning public health, technological development, and cultural affairs. She also served as vice-chairwoman of the 10th National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference—the country’s top political advisory body—and as vice-chairwoman of the Beijing Organizing Committee for the 2008 Olympic Games.
Reactions from Hong Kong and Macau Leadership
Regional leaders expressed deep condolences following the announcement.
She served as a member of the Preparatory Committee of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region under the National People’s Congress and deputy leader of the Central Coordination Group for Hong Kong and Macao Affairs, and had always cared for and supported the long-term stability and prosperity of Hong Kong.
John Lee Ka-chiu, Chief Executive of Hong Kong