Vietnam elected Vo Van Thuong as new President

At the extraordinary meeting of Vietnam National Assembly (NA) in Hanoi on March 2, 2023, Vo Van Thuong, who was nominated by the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) at the Communist Party’s Central Committee meeting the day before, was elected as the new President of Vietnam for the tenure of 2021-2026.

Thuong’s election followed a series of changes in Vietnam’s top political leadership which began at the beginning of this year. First with the dismissal of two capable long serving Deputy Prime Ministers Pham Binh Minh and Vu Duc Dam on January 5, followed by the resignation of Thuong’s predecessor Nguyen Xuan Phuc on January 17, in what was seen as a major escalation of the country's anti-corruption campaign.

While the President’s role is mostly ceremonial, the elevation of Thuong to this post could signal the beginning of a transition of power to the young generation in Vietnam’s leadership. At 53, Thuong is the youngest face of the CPV’s Politburo which began this term in early 2021 with 18 members. He was also the youngest Politburo member in post-war CPV’s history when he was voted on this top decision-making body in 2016 at age 46 while all other members were in their 60s and 70s.

Thuong has been trained and groomed from very early on in the CPV system to become a member of the senior leadership. He started off as a Youth Union leader in Ho Chi Minh city, rising through the ranks with a focus on political theoretical affairs in the 1990s and early 2000s. He rose to national politics when he was appointed First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union in 2007. After four years in national politics, he took CPV assignments in the central province of Quang Ngai as the Party Chief there (2011 – 2014) and HCMC as First Deputy Secretary of the City Party Committee (2014 – 2016). He was voted on the Politburo in 2016 and appointed Chief of the Central Party Commission on Popularization and Education, a conservative CPV body tasked with ensuring loyalty to the Party, typically led by a CPV hardliner. In 2021, Thuong was voted on the Politburo for the second consecutive term and appointed Standing Secretary of the CPV Secretariat (the 5th highest official in the country after the General Secretary, President, Prime Minister and Chairman of the National Assembly).

While Thuong has been a “Party man” for his entire career, he is not considered a conservative. He initiated many reforms in the National Youth Union, Quang Ngai province and HCMC. He is a fast learner and very receptive of innovative ideas. But in order to maintain the blessing of the CPV elders, he has to continue to project an image of a Party loyal, perhaps even more so in his capacity as the new and youngest President in Vietnam’s history. Only then can he mobilize enough political support within the CPV for further reforms.