CCP Operations in Houston, Texas
Time to Excise the United Front
This article focuses on activities conducted by the United Front Work Department (UFWD), a Chinese Communist Party (CCP) organization that General Secretary Xi Jinping refers to as a “magic weapon” for achieving victory. To gain greater insight into the UFWD, please read this article by Alex Joske from the Australian Strategic Policy Initiative (ASPI). It is the most comprehensive English-language overview of the UFWD.
In this article we often mention “overseas Chinese” (CN) communities (华侨华人). This is a term used by the CCP to describe overseas Chinese populations that are coerced to advocate for pro-CCP narratives in their host countries. Some individuals also act as informal intelligence assets, collecting information, countering narratives critical of Beijing, and influencing unwitting decision-makers.
The CCP actively engages with these overseas Chinese populations via the UFWD, which mobilizes diaspora communities to align with Beijing’s strategic objectives.
“Chinese Service Centers”
In 2014 the CCP’s Overseas Chinese Affairs Office (OCAC,国务院侨务办公室), the external face of the UFWD, began designating organizations across the world as “Overseas Chinese Service Centers” (华侨华人互助中心), or Chinese Service Centers (华助中心) for short.
According to OCAC (CN), these centers are CCP supported nonprofit organizations which serve overseas Chinese. “政府支持的民间非营利性为侨服务机构.” These centers are ordered to guide overseas Chinese activities, integrate into existing Chinese society, and expand influence by creating a network of government, civil society, and other overseas Chinese organizations. “影响力不断增强。通过广泛争取政府、社会和其他侨团支持，“华助中心”服务侨胞的渠道初步形成“网络化.”
As of 2022, there were at least 46 “Chinese Service Centers” globally, with seven located in the US. Phil Lenczycki, a senior investigative journalist at the Daily Caller, identified centers in San Francisco, California; Houston, Texas; Omaha, Nebraska; St. Paul, Minnesota; Salt Lake City, Utah; St. Louis, Missouri and Charlotte, North Carolina.
In addition to creating a malign influence network inside the United States, these organizations are also tasked by the Chinese Foreign Ministry to perform consular functions on behalf of the Chinese government as well as accomplish the Chinese Communist Party’s goals.
What the Hell is Going on in Houston?
While all designated “Chinese Service Centers” are agencies working on behalf of the CCP (and should be required to register as such), the Houston Chinese Civic Center (CCC, 中国人活动中心) has a more pronounced role in this network. Since the closure of the Houston Chinese Consulate in 2020, the CCC has functioned as the de facto consulate. In this status, the CCC provides consular services (CN), facilitates trips for CCP officials (CN), and guides all associated overseas Chinese organizations in the greater Houston area as well as Texas.
An example of the CCC guiding other organizations is the Texas Anhui Hometown Association (TAHA) located in Bellaire, Houston. Hometown Associations are widely recognized as United Front organizations. Members of the CCC sit on the TAHA board and direct the organization’s actions. This includes supporting specific candidates in local elections, organizing protests against Taiwan, and hosting meetings for Chinese officials. TAHA contributes personnel and funds to support CCC efforts in Texas.
Zhang Jingjing (张晶晶) aka Clemence Jingjing, is one of the key leaders of TAHA. During her tenure as director of the association, Zhang worked for former Representative Pete Olsen, worked at Fort Bend ISD, and also worked as an appointed official for Governor Abbott. She currently works for Harris County and according to an article released on Feb 5, 2025, Zhang works for Representative Troy Nehls (TX-22).
During her time working for Representative Pete Olsen, Zhang received funding from the Anhui (Dengbu City) Overseas Chinese Office for trips to China and served as a member of the Overseas Chinese Federation, a Chinese government organization. During this time she also almost certainly (CN) contributed to the China Overseas Research Institute, an organization with the following mission:
The Overseas Chinese Research Institute adheres to the guidance of Xi Jinping's Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, carries out work under the leadership of the Party Group, adheres to the policy of the institute of giving equal importance to historical research and realistic research, academic research and service to the overall situation, and strives to build a national, high-end, hub and open overseas Chinese research center.
The immigration research base, the think tank of overseas Chinese affairs work, especially the overseas Chinese Federation, provides decision-making reference for the implementation of major national strategies, provides countermeasure consultation for the overall situation of the Party and the state's overseas Chinese affairs work and the deepening of the reform of the Overseas Chinese Federation, and provides intellectual support for the long-term survival and development of overseas Chinese and the construction of overseas Chinese research disciplines. [Machine translation].
侨研所坚持以习近平新时代中国特色社会主义思想为指导，在会党组领导下开展工作，坚持历史研究与现实研究并重、学术研究与服务大局并重的办所方针，努力建设国家级、高端化、枢纽型、开放式的华侨华人研究中心、国际移民研究基地，侨务工作特别是侨联工作的智库，为国家相关重大战略实施提供决策参考，为党和国家侨务工作大局及深化侨联改革提供对策咨询，为海外侨胞长期生存发展以及华侨华人研究学科建设提供智力支持。
Zhang is still a member of the Overseas Chinese Federation and likely continues to contribute to the China Overseas Research Institute. This is highly problematic considering Zhang works for a sitting US Congressman and supervises Chinese community groups in Texas.
Another CCC and TAHA member is Zhao Meiping. Zhao has a direct working relationship (CN) with the CCP, is a member of the Overseas Chinese Federation, and is the director of the Overseas Chinese International Cultural Promotion Association. In these roles, Zhao has been on multiple Chinese government funded trips (CN) to China. On these trips, the Anhui Overseas Chinese Office, the Overseas Chinese Federation, and the Anhui Provincial Party Committee have guided Zhao to solicit Texas businesses and talent in biomedicine, oil exploration, information technology, and aerospace to set up operations in Anhui’s “Overseas Chinese Dream Garden,” a subsidized Chinese economic zone.
These economic zones are meant to facilitate technology transfers to assist the CCP in overcoming technology bottlenecks.
TAHA is just one of the many Houston-based organizations that the CCC directs on behalf of the CCP. While not an exhaustive list, other organizations almost certainly include the following:
Texas Dongbei Hometown Association (德州东北同乡会)
Asian Election Alliance (亚裔选举联盟)
Houston Sichuan-Chongqing Hometown Association (休斯顿川渝同乡会)
Shandong Hometown Association of the Southern US (美南山东同乡会)
Henan Hometown Association of the Southern US (美南河南同乡会)
Chinese Scholars Association (华夏学人协会)Texas Association for the Promotion of Peaceful Reunification of China
North Houston Chinese Association
Texas Peace and Unification Council
Houston Chapter of the China General Chamber of Commerce
Ongoing Influence Operations
The CCC and affiliated organizations have clearly penetrated deep into Texas politics and have captured significant portions of the Chinese, Taiwanese, Chinese-American and Taiwanese-American communities.
In the case of Stafford Councilmember Alice Chen (谭秋晴), Chen has received widespread support from CCP-affiliated individuals like Ren Deqing, the President of the Texas Association for the Promotion of Peaceful Reunification of China and director of the Texas Peace and Unification Council. Ren is a vocal advocate of “realizing the China Dream”. In an interview with the People’s Daily, Ren stated:
"Overseas Chinese should remember history, stay true to their country [China], and continue to make new contributions to the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation."
“广大海外华侨华人应该铭记历史，不忘家国情怀，为实现中华民族伟大复兴继续作出新贡献。”
Chen herself made statements (CN) to Chinese state media claiming to be faithful to China as a self-proclaimed “Child of Hunan” (“我是湖湘儿女” - CN).
"I grew up in Taiwan and studied and worked in the United States, but I never forgot that I was from Xiangtan, Hunan Province [...] I miss my hometown in Hunan very much. Maybe there are no relatives there, but that's my father's hometown and my hometown!"
Texas Representative Angie Chen also receives support from CCC personnel. When she was first elected in 2008, one of her first meetings was with Qiao Hong, the Chinese Consul General in Houston, and Zhou Ding, Deputy Consul General.
It is unknown if Representative Al Green (D, TX-09) is aware he is in regular contact with CCP-affiliated individuals.
What to Do About CCP Operations on US Soil?
First, all organizations and individuals with ties to the Overseas Chinese Office and other UFWD entities must be required to register as foreign agents. Those that have operated in the United States without registration should face legal scrutiny and consequences under the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA).
Second, states and municipalities must increase awareness of CCP influence tactics and prevent individuals with ties to UFWD organizations from holding positions of political or administrative power. This includes more rigorous vetting of campaign donors, political appointees, and government employees to ensure they are not acting on behalf of foreign entities.
Third, law enforcement and intelligence agencies should actively investigate and counter UFWD operations. This entails expanding FBI counterintelligence efforts against foreign influence campaigns, shutting down CCP-controlled “Chinese Service Centers,” and sanctioning entities and individuals facilitating malign influence activities.
The US must take significant steps to reduce UFWD’s ability to operate on American soil and protect communities from CCP influence campaigns.