Liu Shaoqi was a Chinese revolutionary and politician. He was the chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress from 1954 to 1959, first-ranking vice chairman of the Chinese Communist Party from 1956 to 1966, and the chairman of the People's Republic of China, the head of state from 1959 to 1968. He was considered to be a possible successor to Mao Zedong, but was purged during the Cultural Revolution.

The vice chairman of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party was the second-highest rank within the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) after the chairman from 1956 to 1982. The position was phased out after 1982 in order to remove the "Chairman" position from any government posting, resigning it solely to the late Mao Zedong.