Since the 1980s, Deng Xiaoping, the Chinese leader, implemented mandatory retirement ages for senior officials in the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). This policy was formalized in 1998. In November 2002, at the 16th National Congress of the CCP, then-General Secretary Jiang Zemin stepped down from the powerful Politburo Standing Committee to make way for a younger generation of leadership led by Hu Jintao, a Tsinghua engineering graduate. However, there was speculation that Jiang would continue to have significant influence. At the time, Jiang filled the newly expanded Politburo Standing Committee, which is China's most powerful organ, with three of his hardline allies: former Shanghai Secretary Huang Ju, former Beijing Party Secretary Jia Qinglin, and Li Changchun to control propaganda. Additionally, the new Vice-President, Zeng Qinghong, was also seen as a staunch Jiang ally as he was part of Jiang's Shanghai clique.

During the Congress, Wen Jiabao, who was then Premier Zhu Rongji's right-hand man, was also elevated. He became Premier in March 2003, and along with Hu, they were known as the Hu-Wen Administration. Both Hu and Wen's careers are notable in that they survived the 1989 political crisis, which is attributed to their moderate views and careful attention not to offend or alienate older supporters. Hu Jintao is the first Party Committee Secretary to have joined the Communist Party after the Revolution more than 50 years ago. At the age of 50, he was the youngest member by far of the then seven-member Standing Committee. Wen Jiabao, a geology engineer who spent most of his career in China's hinterlands, had never lost his political ground despite being a former ally to the disgraced CCP General Secretary Zhao Ziyang.