General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam

{{Short description|Practical highest position in the Vietnamese politics}}

{{EngvarB|date=September 2020}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2020}}

{{Infobox official post

| post = General Secretary

| body = the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee

| flag = Flag of the Communist Party of Vietnam.svg

| flagsize = 200px

| flagcaption = Flag of the Communist Party of Vietnam

| native_name = {{lang|vi|Tổng Bí thư Ban Chấp hành Trung ương Đảng Cộng sản Việt Nam}}

| insignia = Communist Party of Vietnam flag logo.svg

| insigniasize = 100px

| insigniacaption = Emblem of the Communist Party of Vietnam

| image = Tô Lâm in Hanoi - 2024 (P064238-935063).jpg

| imagesize = 220px

| incumbent = Tô Lâm

| incumbentsince = 3 August 2024

| type = Party leader, supreme leader

| status = Highest ranking official

| member_of = {{ubl|Central Committee|Political Bureau|Central Military Commission|Secretariat}}

| appointer = Central Committee

| termlength = Five years, renewable once (but exemptions can be given)

| precursor = First Secretary

| formation = {{start date and age|df=yes|1930|10|27}}

| inaugural = Trần Phú

| salary = 30,420,000₫ monthly ($1,186 USD) {{cite web |url = https://dantri.com.vn/lao-dong-viec-lam/bang-luong-cua-lanh-dao-cap-cao-khi-tang-luong-co-so-len-234-trieu-dong-20240704094950182.htm|title = Bảng lương của lãnh đạo cấp cao khi tăng lương cơ sở lên 2,34 triệu đồng | date = 4 July 2024 |publisher = Dân trí}}

}}

{{Politics of Vietnam}}

The general secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee ({{langx|vi|Tổng Bí thư Ban Chấp hành Trung ương Đảng Cộng sản Việt Nam}}),{{Cite web |title=Party General Secretary's address to the press after talks with US President |url=https://en.dangcongsan.vn/vietnam-today/party-general-secretary-s-address-to-the-press-after-talks-with-us-president-606156.html |access-date=2024-01-09 |website=Communist Party of Vietnam Online Newspaper |language=en-US |quote=General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee Nguyen Phu Trong and... |agency=Vietnam News Agency |archive-date=9 January 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240109220159/https://en.dangcongsan.vn/vietnam-today/party-general-secretary-s-address-to-the-press-after-talks-with-us-president-606156.html |url-status=live }} simply and informally the general secretary ({{Lang|vi|Tổng bí thư}}, TBT), is the current title for the holder of the highest office within the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV), being in practice the highest position in the politics of Vietnam and is considered one of the four pillars of the country's leadership. The general secretaryship used to be the second-highest office within the party when Hồ Chí Minh was the chairman, a post which existed from 1951 to 1969, and since 1969, the general secretary has generally been regarded as the highest leader of Vietnam. The general secretary also holds the title of secretary of the Central Military Commission, the leading party organ on military affairs, being the highest political and ideological leader of the People's Army of Vietnam.{{sfn|Porter|1993|pp=83–84}} The current general secretary is Tô Lâm, ranking first in the Politburo.{{Cite web |title=Bộ Chính trị - Khóa XIII {{!}} Ban Chấp hành Trung ương Đảng |url=https://tulieuvankien.dangcongsan.vn/ban-chap-hanh-trung-uong-dang/bo-chinh-tri/khoa-xiii |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231205175953/https://tulieuvankien.dangcongsan.vn/ban-chap-hanh-trung-uong-dang/bo-chinh-tri/khoa-xiii |archive-date=5 December 2023 |access-date=2023-10-07 |website=Documents |publisher=Communist Party of Vietnam}} The position was once designated the first secretary ({{langx|vi|Bí thư Thứ nhất}}) from 1951 to 1976.

Trần Phú, one of the founding members of the Indochinese Communist Party, was the party's first general secretary. A year after being elected, he was sentenced to prison by the French authorities because of anti-French activities. He died in prison the same year.{{sfn|Dodd|Lewis|Emmons|2003|p=557}} Trần's de facto successor was Lê Hồng Phong who led the party through the office of General Secretary of the Overseas Executive Committee (OEC). The OEC general secretary led the party because the Central Committee had been all but annihilated.{{sfn|Brocheux|2007|p=60}} Hà Huy Tập, the third general secretary, was removed from his post in March 1938, and was arrested by the authorities in May.{{sfn|Quinn-Judge|2002|p=225}} Nguyễn Văn Cừ, the fourth general secretary, was arrested by the authorities in January 1940, and executed by shooting on 28 August 1941. He was succeeded by Trường Chinh.{{sfn|Currey|2005|p=61}} An article in Nhân Dân on 25 March 1951 described Trường Chinh's role as the "builder and commander" of the revolution, while Hồ Chí Minh was referred to as "the soul of the Vietnamese revolution and the Vietnamese resistance".{{sfn|Quinn-Judge|2002|pp=1–2}} Trường Chinh was demoted as first secretary in 1956 because of his role in the Land Reform campaign".{{sfn|Thai|1985|pp=27–29}} Hồ Chí Minh took over the office of first secretary, but quickly appointed Lê Duẩn acting first secretary.{{sfn|Ooi|2004|p=777}} Lê Duẩn was elected first secretary in 1960 and was second only to Hồ Chí Minh until the latter's death on 2 September 1969.{{sfn|Brocheux|2007|p=174}}

From 2 September 1969 until his death on 10 July 1986, Lê Duẩn was the undisputed leader of Vietnam.{{sfn|Woods|2002|p=74}} He died two months before the next National Party Congress. He was succeeded by Trường Chinh, the former general secretary who had served as the second-most powerful politician in Vietnam since Hồ Chí Minh's death. Trường Chinh was demoted from his post at the 6th National Party Congress and was succeeded by Nguyễn Văn Linh.{{sfn|Corfield|2008|pp=111–112}} The Western press called Nguyễn Văn Linh "Vietnam's Gorbachev" because of his reformist policies.{{sfn|Mason|Mason|1997|p=313}} He resigned because of bad health in 1991, and Đỗ Mười was appointed to the general secretaryship by the 7th National Congress.{{cite news|title=March of the poor and friendless (Vietnamese Communist Party holds its 7th Congress)|newspaper=The Economist|date= 29 June 1991}} He ruled until 1997, when he was ousted from power by the reformist-wing of the party.{{sfn|Largo|2002|pp=10–13}} Lê Khả Phiêu was Đỗ Mười's successor, and he was elected as a compromise candidate.{{sfn|Abuza|2001|p=1}} He was ousted in 2001, before the 10th National Party Congress, when the Central Committee overturned a decision of the Politburo; a majority in the Central Committee voted to remove Lê Khả Phiêu as general secretary.{{sfn|Abuza|2001|p=12}} Nông Đức Mạnh succeeded him, and he came to be considered a modernizer. Nông Đức Mạnh was also the first general secretary with a university degree.{{cite web|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/1291000.stm|title=Modernising leader for Vietnam|publisher=BBC World News. BBC Online|date=22 April 2001|access-date=14 October 2021|archive-date=21 November 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151121020210/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/1291000.stm|url-status=live}} He retired in 2011, and was succeeded by Nguyễn Phú Trọng, who ruled for thirteen years before his death. After his death in 2024, Tô Lâm succeeded Trọng.

The general secretary presides over the work of the Central Committee, the Political Bureau, the Secretariat, and chairs meetings with key leaders (Working Regulation of the Central Committee, 2011).