Elected by more than 700 delegates, Meng Xuenong was elected mayor of the Beijing municipal government, while Liu Jingmin, Zhao Mao, Zhai Hongxiang, Liu Zhihua, Sun Anmin, Fan Boyuan, Niu Youcheng and Lu Hao were elected vice mayors.

Averaging 51 years of age, the new government is widely considered to be relatively young and well educated. The mayor and all of the vice mayors hold either bachelor's or master's degrees.

The new mayor, Meng Xuenong, 53, a master's degree holder, was born in east China's Shandong Province. He has worked in Beijing and in east China's Zhejiang Province. In December 1998, he was elected as a member of the Standing Committee of the Beijing Municipal Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and deputy mayor of the Beijing municipal government.

Lu Hao, 35, the youngest of the new lineup, holds a master's degree in economics from prestigious Peking University. He will be in charge of the city's industrial sector.

Niu Youcheng, a former CPC district committee secretary in the Daxing District of Beijing, is familiar with the city's agricultural sector.

Fan Boyuan served as a Party secretary and as director of the Beijing Science and Technology Commission before being elected vice mayor.

Sun Anmin served as chairman of the Beijing Federation of Industry and Commerce before being elected vice mayor.

(Xinhua News Agency January 20, 2003)