A Hunan native with a background in waterworks, Zhang's political career seemingly took off in 2015, being assigned a succession of prominent roles around the country.
[1][2] Zhang spent most of his career in the hydroelectric industry, going through a series of engineering and administrative jobs.
In March 2003, he took on his first full-time political job as Chinese Communist Party Deputy Committee Secretary of Yiyang.
[4] In January 2017 he took over from Li Shulei as head of the discipline inspection commission of Beijing.
In January 2022, he was elected Vice Chairman of the Standing Committee of the Guangdong Provincial People's Congress.