Born Linghu Zhengce to a Communist official's family in Pinglu County, Shanxi Province, Ling and all his three siblings received names related to the Communist Party terminology. His own name, Zhengce, means "policy". He got involved in politics in October 1968 and joined the Communist Party of China in November 1973. Ling initially worked at a hospital, and then was transferred to work as a labourer a sulphur mine. Between 1971 and 1982 Ling worked for the party organization in Yuncheng, and subsequently for the party's General Office of Shanxi province. In 1984, Ling graduated from Shanxi University, majoring in Chinese literature. After graduation Ling returned to work in the General Office for the "books and literature division". He spent much of the next decade working for confidential document classification in the provincial government, before being promoted in 1997 to become the deputy director of provincial grain distribution. Beginning in 2000, Ling worked as a functionary for provincial planning and development. In 2004, he was appointed the Director of Shanxi Development and Reform Commission, a powerful government agency that had vast powers over the provincial economy. In January 2008, he was appointed the Vice-Chairman of Shanxi People's Political Consultative Conference. On June 19, 2014, it was announced that he would be investigated by the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection of the Communist Party of China for "serious violations of laws and regulations". Ling Zhengce's brother Ling Jihua was expelled from the party in mid 2015 and indicted on a series of criminal charges. On August 21, 2015, following the CCDI investigation, Ling Zhengce was also expelled from the Communist Party of China. In its official announcement, the CCDI accused Ling of taking bribes to obtain promotions and business interests for others, and for using his office to seek gain for his relatives. He was also accused of obstructing the investigation. Like his brother, Ling Zhengce was also accused of "violating political rules." He was rumoured to be a member of the mysterious Xishan Society. On December 16, 2016, Ling was sentenced for 12-and-a-half years in prison in Changzhou Intermediate Court, for taking either directly or indirectly 16 million yuan in bribes from 2001 to 2014.
