The secretary of the Political and Legal Affairs Commission of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party is the leader of the Central Political and Legal Affairs Commission (CPLC), the department of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) responsible for political and legal affairs.
The Central Political and Legal Affairs Commission is headed by a single secretary, operating under a "secretary responsibility system." The secretary is assisted by deputy secretaries and members. The secretary of the Central Political and Legal Affairs Commission is a key leadership position within the CCP Central Committee, typically held by a member of the Secretariat, a member of the Politburo, or sometimes a member of the Politburo Standing Committee, a position that places them among the Party and state leaders. The current head of the CPLC is Chen Wenqing, who is a member of the CCP Politburo.
In 1958, a Politics and Law Leading Group was set up, with Peng Zhen as its leader. In 1980, the commission was established, with Peng Zhen back as its secretary.
In 2013 and 2014, the Politburo of the CCP Central Committee held meetings to hear the findings of an investigation against Zhou Yongkang and, in June 2015, Zhou was found guilty of accepting bribes, abuse of power, intentionally leaking state secrets for which his private possessions were confiscated and he was sentenced to life in prison. Zhou is among the most senior and powerful Chinese leaders to be jailed in CCP general secretary Xi Jinping's anti-corruption campaign.