Xi Jinping was unanimously elected President of China for a historic third term at the ongoing session of the 14th National People's Congress (NPC) on Friday, March 10. He was also elected as chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC), reports Xinhua news agency.

Nearly 3,000 members of the NPC voted unanimously at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing for Xi to be President, in an election where there was no other candidate. The vote for Xi was reportedly 2,952 to 0 by the NPC, members of which are appointed by the ruling party. Following the election, the 69-year-old President also made a public pledge of allegiance to the Constitution. Xi's new five-year run was made possible following a change to the Constitution in 2018 that scrapped term limits.

The vote on Friday was largely ceremonial as he had already locked in a historic third term as head of the Chinese Communist Party at a major party congress last October, sealing his place as China's most powerful ruler since Mao Zedong.

Changes to the country's leadership take place every five years and usually closely mirror the reshuffle announced at the party congress.