Xi Jinping’s sustained dominance over the Chinese Communist Party and People’s Liberation Army underpins the market’s 95.8 percent “No” consensus. Extensive purges of senior military commanders and Politburo members through 2025 and into mid-2026 have removed potential rivals and reinforced centralized authority, with Xi chairing recent Politburo sessions on party discipline ahead of the October 2026 plenum. He shows no public signs of stepping aside before the 2027 Party Congress, where analysts expect him to pursue a fourth term. While unverified health rumors or abrupt elite realignment could theoretically alter the trajectory, verifiable developments indicate continued control and the absence of organized opposition capable of forcing an exit before 2027.