To prevent another Mao-like figure from rising to power, Deng established collective leadership and put in place age and term limits. With the political institutions intact, to gain near-absolute power Xi simply flipped the switch to reactivate the old system. Western support for China’s economic reforms, including embracing its membership in the World Trade Organization, was premised on the assumption that economic development would lead to democratisation. The next step in Xi’s power grab is unlikely to succeed without another behind-the-scenes struggle. The Broken China Dream provides China watchers with valuable pointers about what to look out for in the lead-up to the 2027 party congress.