Qiao Shi
Deng's health deteriorated in the years prior to his death in 1997. During that time, General secretary Jiang Zemin and other members of his generation gradually assumed control of the day-to-day functions of government. This "third generation" leadership governed collectively with Jiang at the "core". Jiang was initially seen as an unlikely candidate for the position of General Secretary, and was believed to be simply a power transition figure. In reality, however, Jiang's era saw the return to complete, centralized leadership by 1998, after ousting rival party leader Qiao Shi and firmly taking the positions of the CPC General secretary, the President, and the Chairman of the Central Military Commission, becoming paramount leader of China's tripartite Party-State-Military functional structure.