Zhou Ji (politician, born 1964)

In this Chinese name, the family name is Zhou.

Zhou Ji (Chinese: 周霁; born May 1964) is a Chinese politician and member of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), who is currently serving as the served as director of the Hong Kong Liaison Office and secretary of the Hong Kong Work Committee of the Chinese Communist Party since May 2025.

Zhou Ji
周霁
Director of the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in Hong Kong
Incumbent
Assumed office 30 May 2025
Premier	Li Qiang
Preceded by	Zheng Yanxiong
Vice Governor of Henan
In office January 2021 – October 2021
Preceded by	Huang Qiang
Succeeded by	Sun Shougang
Communist Party Secretary of Yichang
In office December 2016 – December 2020
Preceded by	Huang Chuping
Succeeded by	Wang Li
Communist Party Secretary of Shiyan
In office May 2012 – December 2016
Preceded by	Chen Tianhui
Succeeded by	Zhang Weiguo
Mayor of Shiyan
In office June 2010 – August 2012
Preceded by	Zhang Siyi
Succeeded by	Zhang Weiguo
Personal details
Born	May 1964 (age 62) Xiangyang, Hubei, China
Party	Chinese Communist Party
Alma mater	Hubei University of Technology Wuhan University Huazhong University of Science and Technology

Early life

Zhou was born on May 1964 in Xiangyang city in Hubei, China.

Political career

After graduating from Hubei University of Technology in 1984, Zhou began his career in Xiangyang, where he held a series of positions in the municipal machinery industry. During nearly two decades in the sector, he worked in government administration and state-owned enterprises, rising from a local bureau official to chairman of Xiangzhou Bearing Group Corporation. He also completed part-time studies in law at Wuhan University and later earned a master's degree in electronic and communication engineering from Huazhong University of Science and Technology.

In 2004, he was appointed Communist Party secretary of Gucheng County in Hubei. Later that year, he joined the Standing Committee of the Xiangyang Municipal Committee of the Chinese Communist Party. In 2006, he was transferred to serve as Communist Party secretary of Xiantao. In June 2010, Zhou was appointed acting mayor of Shiyan and was formally elected mayor later that year. He became Communist Party secretary of Shiyan in May 2012. Four years later, he joined the Standing Committee of the Hubei Provincial Committee of the Chinese Communist Party while concurrently serving as Communist Party secretary of Yichang. In December 2020, Zhou was transferred to Henan, where he became a member of the provincial Party standing committee and deputy secretary of the provincial government's Party leadership group. He was appointed Executive Vice Governor of Henan in January 2021 and was promoted to deputy Communist Party secretary of Henan in October that year. The following month, he also became secretary of the Henan Provincial Political and Legal Affairs Commission.

In July 2023, Zhou was appointed executive deputy director of the Hong Kong and Macau Work Office of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party, a ministerial-level position. On 30 May 2025, Zhou was appointed director of the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, succeeding Zheng Yanxiong. He also concurrently assumed the role of National Security Adviser to the Committee for Safeguarding National Security of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. Zhou's appointment followed the unexpected removal of Zheng, whose departure was announced without an official explanation. Chief Executive of Hong Kong John Lee described the leadership change as a "normal" personnel adjustment, while Reuters reported, citing a source familiar with the matter, that Zheng's removal may have been linked to Beijing's dissatisfaction over the proposed sale of CK Hutchison's global ports business. Chinese authorities did not publicly confirm the reported reason for the reshuffle.