He climbed to the bureau chief position by pulling strings.
Tips
culture
跑官 is a charged term from PRC anti-corruption discourse, often paired as 跑官买官 (pǎoguān mǎiguān, 'lobbying for and buying offices'). It implies the distortion of merit-based promotion via gift-giving, banquets, and 关系 (guānxi).
memory
Literally 'to run after an official post' — picture someone literally running around (跑) chasing an 官 (official position).
