Chinese Vice President Zeng Qinghong retired from the Communists' upper ranks on Sunday, bolstering Party boss Hu Jintao's grip on power and clearing the way for a younger generation of potential successors.
Zeng (68) a powerful Party organisation boss promoted by Hu's predecessor, Jiang Zemin, was left off the newly elected Central Committee of 204 full members, Xinhua news agency reported.
His departure, an influx of recruits into the Central Committee, and changes to the Party charter all underscored Hu's growing clout as he launched himself into five more years in charge of the world's fourth biggest economy.
"Hu has the power; it's now up to him to decide how he wants to use it and what he wants to do," said Li Datong, a former editor at a Party newspaper who now publishes political analyses.
"But Hu won't be adventurous. That's not in his nature, and the Party and country have already formed interest groups that any leader would find it very difficult to move."
Delegates wound up the five-yearly Congress by unanimously agreeing to write Hu's trademark slogans into the charter, overshadowing those of Jiang.
Hu was also the top vote-getter in the tightly controlled ballot for the Committee, winning all but two of the 2,235 votes, a delegate said.