Xi was appointed to the nine-man Politburo Standing Committee of the Communist Party of China at the 17th Party Congress in October 2007 . He was ranked above Li Keqiang , an indication that he was going to succeed Hu Jintao as China 's next leader . In addition , Xi also held the top-ranking membership of the Communist Party 's Central Secretariat . This assessment was further supported at the 11th National People 's Congress in March 2008 , when Xi was elected as vice-president of the People 's Republic of China . Following his elevation , Xi has held a broad range of portfolios . He was put in charge of the comprehensive preparations for the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing , as well as being the central government 's leading figure in Hong Kong and Macau affairs . In addition , he also became the new president of the Central Party School of the Communist Party of China , the cadre-training and ideological education wing of the Communist Party . In the wake of the 2008 Sichuan earthquake , Xi visited disaster areas in Shaanxi and Gansu . He made his first foreign trip as vice president to North Korea , Mongolia , Saudi Arabia , Qatar and Yemen from 17 to 25 June 2008 . After the Olympics , Xi was assigned the post of committee chair for the preparations of the 60th Anniversary Celebrations of the founding of the People 's Republic of China . He was also reportedly at the helm of a top-level Communist Party committee dubbed the 6521 Project , which was charged with ensuring social stability during a series of politically sensitive anniversaries in 2009
2008 Sichuan earthquake
2008 Sichuan earthquake
Xi Jinping