Liu Yandong

Liu Yandong
刘延东
Liu Yandong in 2016
Vice Premier of the People's Republic of China
Incumbent
Assumed office March 16, 2013 Serving with Zhang Gaoli, Wang Yang, Ma Kai
Premier	Li Keqiang
State Councilor of the People's Republic of China
In office March 17, 2008 – March 16, 2013 Serving with Liang Guanglie, Ma Kai, Meng Jianzhu, Dai Bingguo
Premier	Wen Jiabao
Head of the United Front Work Department of the Central Committee
In office December 2002 – December 2007
General Secretary	Hu Jintao
Preceded by	Wang Zhaoguo
Succeeded by	Du Qinglin
Personal details
Born	November 1945 (age 71) Nantong, Jiangsu
Nationality	Chinese
Political party	Communist Party of China
Alma mater	Tsinghua University

Liu Yandong (Chinese: 刘延东; born November 1945) is a Chinese politician. She is currently serving as Vice Premier of the People's Republic of China, and is a member of the Politburo of the Communist Party of China. She previously held the post of State Councilor between 2007 and 2012, and headed the United Front Work Department of the Communist Party between 2002 and 2007.

A graduate of Tsinghua University, Liu's career has long been associated with her fellow alumnus and Communist Youth League colleague Hu Jintao. As such Chinese-language media has sometimes labelled Liu as part of the so-called "Tuanpai", or "Youth League clique". Since the retirement of Wu Yi, Liu has been the highest-ranked female political figure in China, and one of only two women with a seat on the Politburo, the other being Sun Chunlan.

Liu Yandong was born in Nantong County, Jiangsu, in what was then Republic of China. Her father Liu Ruilong was one of the founders of the 14th Army of the Reds, an early Communist revolutionary militia force. As her father was of a revolutionary background, she has been classified by some analysts as a princeling. Liu entered the prestigious Tsinghua University in 1964, weathered the Cultural Revolution, and graduated in 1970 with a degree in chemistry. While in college, Liu was a part-time political instructor.

Shortly after graduation, Liu began work at a chemical production plant in Tangshan, an industrial city in northeastern China, in what was likely an assignment by the state. In 1980, she was transferred to work for the party organization in Beijing, in 1981 she was made deputy Party Secretary of Chaoyang District. In 1982, Liu began working for the Communist Youth League, where she worked with contemporaries Wang Zhaoguo, Hu Jintao, and Song Defu. She worked at the Youth League for nine years. During this time she served as Chairwoman of the All-China Youth Federation.