Qiao Shi
In 1985, Chinese spy chief Yu Qiangsheng defected to the United States, causing Politburo member and Political and Legal Affairs Commission Secretary Chen Pixian to be demoted. Qiao Shi was then selected to fill the void, partly due to his proximity to General Secretary Hu Yaobang and earning the approval of paramount leader Deng Xiaoping. In that year, Qiao Shi was elected to the Politburo of the Communist Party, the second highest rung of power. In 1986, he became a Vice Premier of the State Council. From 1987 to 1997, Qiao Shi was a member of the Politburo Standing Committee, China's top decision-making body, overseeing the broad portfolios of internal security, intelligence, justice, and party discipline. From 1987 to 1992, he also served as the Secretary of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, the party's agency in charge of anti-corruption efforts.