Hu Heping

Hu Heping (Chinese: 胡和平; pinyin: Hú Hépíng; born October 1962) is a Chinese politician, serving since April 2016 as the acting Governor of Shaanxi province. Previously, he served as Deputy Party Secretary of Shaanxi province, head of the Organization Department of Zhejiang province and as Communist Party Secretary of Tsinghua University.

Biography

Hu was born in 1962 in Linyi, Shandong province. He graduated with a hydraulic engineering degree from Tsinghua University. He joined the Communist Party while studying at Tsinghua, in June 1982. In 1990 he received a master's of engineering degree. He also worked as an instructor and teaching assistant while becoming involved with the grassroots party organization at the university. In 1992, he entered University of Tokyo to study engineering, by 1995 he had earned his doctorate and then joined the Japanese architecture firm INA.

Hu returned to China in December 1996 and became vice dean of the Department of Hydraulic Engineering at Tsinghua University and the head of the Institute of Water Resources. In 2000, he began overseeing party personnel and human resources at Tsinghua. In 2006, he became executive deputy secretary and vice president of Tsinghua. In December 2008 he was elevated to party chief, the highest position at the university (equivalent in rank to a vice minister of state).

In December 2013, Hu replaced Cai Qi as Organization Department chief of the Zhejiang provincial party committee, making his first foray into regional politics; Hu also earned a Shengwei Changwei seat.^[1] In April 2015 he was made deputy party chief of Shaanxi.^[2] On 1 April 2016, Hu was promoted to Acting Governor of Shaanxi. At the time of his appointment as governor, he had just over two years of experience in regional politics.^[3] Analysts suggested the Hu's promotion took the "fast lane."^[4]

Hu is an alternate member of the 18th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China.^[5]

References