Chemical oxidation technology based on strong oxidants is an effective means to achieve the removal of recalcitrant organic pollutants. Compared with gas-form oxidants (e.g., ozone) and liquid-form oxidants (e.g., hydrogen peroxide), solid-form oxidants (e.g., permanganate) are relatively long-life, stable and impose much less safety risks, which were even more preferred for the degradation of organic pollutants in water. In recent years, in order to further improve the efficiency of solid oxidants in removing refractory pollutants, it has been widely recognized that the method of adding reducing mediators to enhance the removal of organic pollutants by oxidants has been widely recognized, especially in the degradation of emerging pollutants. This paper summarizes the latest progress of reducing mediator enhanced typical solid oxidants such as permanganate (KMnO4), ferrate (K2FeO4) and periodate (KIO4) degradation of organic pollutants. Moreover, the potential enhancement mechanisms of the reaction are emphatically expounded, and the research on chemical oxidation enhancement based on reducing mediators is prospected.