Ye Jianying, Chinese general and politician, Head of State of the People's Republic of China (died 1986)

Ye Jianying was a Chinese Communist revolutionary leader and politician, one of the Ten Marshals of the People's Republic of China. He was the top military leader in the 1976 coup that overthrew the Gang of Four and ended the Cultural Revolution, and was the key supporter of Deng Xiaoping in his power struggle with Hua Guofeng between 1978 and 1981, which ended in Hua fading into political obscurity. In his capacity as Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, Ye served as China's head of state from 1978 until 1983.

The position of state representative is the highest state office of the People's Republic of China, with a role similar to a head of state and holds the second to eighth highest-ranking position in Chinese history, always under the leader of the Chinese Communist Party. The state representative is often, but not always, also the top leader of China. Under the current constitution, which does not officially define any office as the head of state, the state representative is the president of the People's Republic of China. The role was created in 1954 when the first constitution consolidated the system of government in the People's Republic of China. At the time, the title was translated into English as State Chairman. The position was abolished between 1975 and 1982 with the functions of state representative being performed by the chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress. The presidency was revived under the fourth constitution in 1982.