Li to oversee Hong Kong

Li Yuanchao will likely be the Politburo’s eyes and ears in Hong Kong.

An ally of former Communist Party General Secretary Hu Jintao, Li is expected to become Vice-President next year and will oversee Hong Kong and Macau. He will remain a member of the Politburo but will not join its Central Politburo Standing Committee of the Communist Party of China (PSC), however.

The PSC is the de facto highest and most powerful decision-making body in China and consists of the top leadership of the Communist Party of China.

He succeeded Vice-President Xi Jinping, who took over from Hu as Communist Party chief last week and will become China’s President in March 2013.

Li is known for his open-mindedness and this might mean the relatively open political atmosphere in Hong Kong will continue. He will work with Wang Guangya, director of the State Council's Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office.

"Hong Kong and Macau affairs will likely become Li's major portfolio as vice-president," said Michael Tien Puk-sun, a Hong Kong deputy to the National People's Congress. "That could mean a more focused handling as compared to the past.”

Li has university degrees in mathematics and economics and a doctorate in law. He also spent time at Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government in the United States. He was party chief of Jiangsu province from 2002 to 2007.

Li told US diplomats in 2007 that China could hold competitive elections for the Politburo and Politburo Standing Committee in 20 to 30 years.