Chinese President Xi Jinping's elevation as core leader was a topic of speculation before the four-day party plenum started on Monday.
There has been a campaign within the party to place Xi alongside Mao Zedong and Deng Xiaoping and make his position unchallenged.
Xi's elevation to the cult leader status was confirmed by the phrasing adopted in the party plenum documents. The communiqué released after the plenum referred to "the Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping as the core," Chinas's sate television CCTV reported.
No other Chinese president in the recent past attained the core leader status and it's the first time that the term is used to refer to Xi, who became president in 2012.
China's state media wrote eulogies in their editorial space after Xi formally made his position within the party ever more formidable.
Global Times wrote a lengthy editorial that summarily branded the plenum decision as Chinese people's unanimous wish.
"Xi as the core in fact has long been in the minds of the Chinese people and among public opinion," the Chinese party mouthpiece said.
The paper basically ascribes two main reasons for Xi's elevation -- his fight against corruption within the party and the government and his unprecedented foreign policy successes.
The paper says it was unthinkable a few years ago that corruption would be curbed effectively. But xi made it possible. "It was beyond anybody's belief that corruption could be tamed and officialdom would progress toward less corruption a few years ago. But it is happening in China. Luxurious restaurants and entertainment sites that officials frequented in the past have been shut down due to poor business. Officials use domestic cars instead of Audis now," the paper wrote.
China's rising dominance in region
It also credits Xi with the country's rising dominance in the region, and cites the recent diplomatic slant of the Philippines towards Beijing as an example.
"....as tension with Vietnam gradually calms down and the Philippines has dramatically changed its confrontational stance against China, the geopolitics in the South China Sea are changing significantly," the paper notes.
Meanwhile Xinhua said in a commentary the decision to elevate Xi "reflects the common will of the entire Party, the military and people of all ethnic groups in China."
Since the 18th Party Congress, Xi led the Party, the military and the people in breaking new grounds and making great achievements, the official news agency said.
The commentary said Xi's leadership was instrumental in "building socialism with Chinese characteristics".
