The New “Four Pillars” of Việt Nam: Inside the 2026–2031 Leadership Structure

With the 14th Party Congress having finalized the top Party personnel, the newly elected National Assembly has completed its selection of key leadership positions within the state apparatus, dropping one of the most important pieces of the new term into place.

The power structure for the 2026–2031 period has officially taken shape and centers on four figures:

• General Secretary, concurrently State President: Tô Lâm
• Prime Minister: Lê Minh Hưng
• Chairman of the National Assembly: Trần Thanh Mẫn
• Standing Member of the Secretariat: Trần Cẩm Tú

This leadership lineup is simultaneously familiar and unfamiliar. While most of the individuals are returning figures, the specific arrangement of these positions suggests the emergence of a new power structure.

General Secretary and State President Tô Lâm

As early as the 14th Party Congress in January, observers predicted that Tô Lâm would retain his position as General Secretary while also assuming the role of State President. [1] By the first session of the new National Assembly, this speculation became a reality.

Such a development is rare in modern Vietnamese politics, as it departs from the traditional “four pillars” model and the collective leadership system maintained for decades. Holding the two highest positions in both the Party and the state suggests a shift toward a different model for the new term, characterized by faster decision-making and concentrated power, but also a greater dependence on a single center. [2]

Lâm has spent almost his entire career within the security apparatus, rising through the police forces to serve as Deputy Minister and then Minister of Public Security before ascending to the top Party position. Since he reached the pinnacle of power, the influence of the Ministry of Public Security has continued to expand, accompanied by a growing presence of personnel with roots in his home province of Hưng Yên. [3]

What is novel about this term is not merely his dual role but the increasingly unified axis of power forming around these positions, which is stronger than in any recent term. Furthermore, if conventions regarding age and tenure hold, this may be his final term as general secretary.

Prime Minister Lê Minh Hưng

Lê Minh Hưng stands out as the only first-time entrant among the “four pillars” of this term. However, his selection was entirely expected prior to the 14th Party Congress. Early in the year, The Straits Times listed him among the leading candidates for the premiership. [4]

This speculation intensified just days before the National Assembly convened when an image of a prime minister’s office nameplate bearing his name circulated on social media.

Born in 1970, he is not only one of the youngest members of the new Politburo but also the youngest among the four pillars. His relatively young age and lack of prior experience leading a locality stand in stark contrast to his predecessors.

Given that Tô Lâm concurrently holds the top Party and state positions, political analyst Nguyễn Anh Tuấn has predicted this dynamic will result in a model of “a very strong General Secretary paired with a very weak Prime Minister.” [5]

His background differs significantly from many of his prominent Politburo peers. While several powerful figures hail from police or military backgrounds, the new premier maintains a distinctly technocratic profile. [6]

He holds a master’s degree in economics from Japan and previously served as the governor of the State Bank. Furthermore, before entering the executive branch, he served as Head of the Central Organization Commission, which largely controls the planning, appointments, and rotations of senior officials.

Consequently, he operates at the intersection of economic management and personnel organization. The novelty of his appointment lies in the fact that a leader who deeply understands finance, personnel, and the machinery of governance now holds the premiership.

National Assembly Chairman Trần Thanh Mẫn

Hồ Chí Minh City is often considered a “cradle” for the presidency, so Trần Thanh Mẫn’s candidacy for the National Assembly had sparked speculation about a possible shift in roles at the top level. [7] However, those speculations ended when he was reelected as chairman of the congress.

Over the past months, his role in the 15th National Assembly has not left many particularly notable marks. [8] For that reason, observers suggest that his initial selection in 2024 stemmed from his lack of an overly strong personal imprint or assertive power profile.

Another important factor is his Mekong Delta origins. In a political context where the other three top figures all hail from northern Việt Nam, elevating a leader from Hậu Giang ensures a necessary degree of regional balance. 

As such, his role during this term may not be to pioneer breakthroughs. Instead, he is positioned to maintain stability within the legislative branch, ensure consensus, and preserve regional equilibrium within the newly established leadership framework.

Standing Member of the Secretariat Trần Cẩm Tú

Since September 2025, the familiar “four pillars” model of Vietnamese politics has expanded into a “five pillars” structure, with the position of Standing Member of the Secretariat formally elevated into the top leadership group. [9] Trần Cẩm Tú currently holds this office, having been re-elected at the 14th Party Congress in January.

Although he appears least frequently in public, this role reveals that his power lies deep within the Party’s internal operations.

The Standing Member of the Secretariat directly oversees the daily work of the Secretariat and the Party’s internal affairs. [10] In practice, this position is often regarded as a “deputy general secretary,” making him effectively the number two figure in the Party’s internal functioning. [11]

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Looking at the overall picture, it is clear that this time the Party’s selection of personnel relies more on “special cases” than on standard rules. [12] For instance, Tô Lâm, despite exceeding the usual age limit, was re-elected as General Secretary. [13] Similarly, Lê Minh Hưng was elected Prime Minister despite having not yet completed a full term in the Politburo.

Another notable point is the significant shift in the balance between the military and the police compared to the previous term’s four pillars. Previously, both forces had representation at the highest level, with the police represented by the General Secretary and the military by Lương Cường. In this new term, however, the military lacks a representative among the top leadership.

Ultimately, these developments suggest that the national power structure is not merely rotating personnel but fundamentally shifting its operational dynamic.

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Thúc Kháng wrote this article in Vietnamese and published it in Luật Khoa Magazine on April 10, 2026. Đàm Vĩnh Hằng translated it into English for The Vietnamese Magazine.