Gong served as deputy director of the Tianjin customs department from 1993 to 1996, and director of the Shenzhen customs department from 2001 to 2003. In 2003, he was promoted to deputy director of the General Administration of Customs.[1][2]
In December 2008, Gong Zheng was appointed Vice Governor of Zhejiang province, and was promoted to Executive Vice Governor in June 2012. In September 2013, he became the Communist Party Chief of Hangzhou, the provincial capital.[1] In August 2015, Gong was named deputy party chief of Shandong province, replacing Wang Junmin, who left the post due to reaching the mandatory retirement age.[3]
In April 2017, Gong was appointed as Governor of Shandong.[4]
On March 23, 2020, Gong was appointed as Mayor of Shanghai.[5][6]
A Hangzhou official described Gong as an "open-minded" leader who spoke English reasonably well.[5]
On April 29, 2023, Gong led a Shanghai delegation to visit Indonesia to comprehensively promote high-level practical cooperation between Shanghai and Indonesia in accordance with the important consensus reached by President Xi Jinping and President Joko Widodo to jointly build a community with a shared future between China and Indonesia. During the visit, Gong Zheng met with Indonesian Maritime and Investment Coordinating Minister Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan, Jakarta Acting Governor Heru Budi Hartono, and Yogyakarta Special Administrative Region Government Executive Secretary Wiyos Santoso attended the Shanghai-Jakarta Symposium for Overseas Investment Enterprises and witnessed the signing of the project.[7]