XI'AN - Zhao Leji, a member of the 16th Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, was elected secretary of the CPC Shaanxi Provincial Committee on Friday.

Zhao was elected to the post at the first plenary session of the 11th CPC Shaanxi Provincial Committee held in Xi'an, capital of Shaanxi, in northwest China.

Zhao was born in Xining, capital of northwestern Qinghai Province in March 1957 and joined the CPC in July 1975. He graduated from the department of philosophy at Peking University in 1980.

Zhao had served in various business and governmental posts before he was appointed secretary of Qinghai CPC Provincial Committee in August 2003.

Also on Friday, the CPC Guangdong Provincial Committee re-elected Zhang Dejiang its secretary.

Zhang is a member of the Politburo of the 16th Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee.

A native of Tai'an, northeastern Liaoning Province, Zhang was born in November 1946. He became party chief of Guangdong in November 2002 after serving in the same posts in Jilin Province and eastern Zhejiang Province between 1995 and 2002.