Lai Ching-te facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Lai Ching‑te
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賴清德
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Official portrait, 2024
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| 8th President of the Republic of China | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Assumed office 20 May 2024 |
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| Premier | Cho Jung-tai | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Vice President | Hsiao Bi-khim | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Preceded by | Tsai Ing-wen | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 18th Chairman of the Democratic Progressive Party | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Assumed office 18 January 2023 |
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| Secretary General | Hsu Li-ming Yang Yi-shan (acting) Lin Yu-chang |
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| Preceded by | Chen Chi-mai (acting) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 12th Vice President of the Republic of China | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| In office 20 May 2020 – 20 May 2024 |
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| President | Tsai Ing-wen | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Preceded by | Chen Chien-jen | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Succeeded by | Hsiao Bi-khim | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 29th Premier of the Republic of China | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| In office 8 September 2017 – 14 January 2019 |
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| President | Tsai Ing-wen | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Vice Premier | Shih Jun-ji | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Preceded by | Lin Chuan | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Succeeded by | Su Tseng-chang | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1st Mayor of Tainan | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| In office 25 December 2010 – 7 September 2017 |
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| Deputy | Hsu He-chun | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Preceded by | Position established | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Succeeded by | Li Meng-yen (acting) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Member of the Legislative Yuan | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| In office 1 February 2008 – 25 December 2010 |
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| Constituency | Tainan II | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| In office 1 February 1999 – 31 January 2008 |
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| Constituency | Tainan City | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal details | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 6 October 1959 Wanli, Taipei County, Taiwan (now Wanli, New Taipei City, Taiwan) |
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| Political party |
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| Spouse |
Wu Mei-ju
(m. 1986) |
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| Children | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Education | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Chinese name | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Traditional Chinese | 賴清德 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 赖清德 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Lai Ching-te (Chinese: 賴清德; pinyin: Lài Qīngdé), also known as William Lai, was born on October 6, 1959. He is a Taiwanese politician and a former doctor. Since May 2024, he has been the 8th President of the Republic of China (Taiwan).
He is the third person from the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) to become president. He is also the first president whose predecessor was also from the DPP. Before becoming president, he served as the Vice President of Taiwan. Since 2023, he has also been the leader of the DPP.
Lai grew up in a working-class family in Taipei County. He studied medicine at National Taiwan University and National Cheng Kung University. Later, he earned a master's degree from Harvard University in 2003.
After working as a doctor, Lai entered politics. He was elected to the Legislative Yuan (Taiwan's parliament) in 1996. He served there for many years. In 2010, he became the Mayor of Tainan and was re-elected in 2014.
In September 2017, President Tsai Ing-wen chose Lai to be the Premier (head of government). He resigned in January 2019 after the DPP lost many local elections. In 2019, he ran for president but did not win the DPP primary. However, he became Tsai Ing-wen's running mate for the 2020 election. They won, and he served as Vice President. In April 2023, the DPP chose him as their presidential candidate for the 2024 election. He won and became president on May 20, 2024.
Contents
Early Life and Education
Lai was born on October 6, 1959, in Wanli. This was a small coastal town in northern Taipei County. His family worked in coal mining. Sadly, his father died in a coal mine accident in January 1960. Lai's mother raised him and his five brothers and sisters by herself.
He went to Taipei Municipal Chien Kuo High School. Then, he studied physical therapy at National Taiwan University. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree. After that, he joined the army and served in Kinmen County.
After his military service, Lai studied at National Cheng Kung University in Tainan. He earned a Doctor of Medicine (M.D.) degree in 1991. Later, he went to the United States. He studied at the Harvard School of Public Health and earned a Master of Public Health (M.P.H.) in 2003. He specialized in spinal cord damage.
Political Career
Lai decided to enter politics after helping with an election campaign in 1994. In 1996, he won a seat in the National Assembly. This was a national body in Taiwan.
He then joined the New Tide faction within the DPP. He ran for the Legislative Yuan in 1998 and won. He was re-elected three more times. In total, he served 11 years as a legislator. He was even named Taiwan's "Best Legislator" four times by a group called Citizen Congress Watch.
Mayor of Tainan (2010–2017)
In 2010, Tainan City and Tainan County joined together to form a larger city called Tainan. Lai was chosen by the DPP to run for mayor. He won the mayoral election on November 27, 2010. He received over 60% of the votes. He started his term as mayor on December 25, 2010.
Because he was popular and Tainan was a strong DPP area, some people thought he might run for president in 2016. In 2013, a survey showed he was the most popular city leader in Taiwan. He had an approval rating of 87%.
Lai visited Shanghai, China, in June 2014. He went to an art exhibition and met with Chinese politicians.
He ran for re-election as mayor on November 29, 2014. He won by a very large margin. He stepped down as Mayor in September 2017. This was because he was appointed as the Premier.
Premier of Taiwan (2017–2019)
In September 2017, the Premier at the time, Lin Chuan, resigned. President Tsai Ing-wen then announced that Lai would become the next head of the Executive Yuan (Taiwan's cabinet).
Lai became the 49th Premier of Taiwan on September 8. After he became Premier, President Tsai's approval ratings went up. Lai said he believed Taiwan was already an independent country. He also said Taiwan did not need to declare independence again.
In November 2018, Lai offered to resign. This was after the ruling DPP lost many local elections. He stayed in office for a short time to help the government. Lai's cabinet officially resigned on January 11, 2019. Su Tseng-chang was appointed as the new Premier.
Vice Presidency (2020–2024)
In March 2019, Lai decided to run for president in the DPP primary election. This was unusual because he was challenging a sitting president, Tsai Ing-wen. He did not win the primary.
However, in November 2019, Lai agreed to be President Tsai Ing-wen's running mate. They ran together in the 2020 Taiwan presidential election. They won the election with a record number of votes. Lai began his term as Vice President in 2020.
As Vice President, Lai traveled to other countries. He was a special envoy for President Tsai. For example, he visited Honduras in January 2022. He also made a private trip to Japan to pay respects after the death of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. In November 2022, he visited Palau to help build stronger ties between the two countries.
In November 2022, President Tsai Ing-wen resigned as the leader of the DPP. This happened after the party lost many local elections. Lai then ran for the position of DPP chairman. He was the only candidate, so he became the new chairman of the DPP in 2023.
2024 Presidential Campaign
In March 2023, Lai was the only person to run in the DPP's primary for the 2024 presidential election. He was officially chosen as the party's candidate in April. On November 21, 2023, he officially registered his campaign with his running mate, Hsiao Bi-khim.
Lai won the election on January 13, 2024. This was the first time a political party in Taiwan had won three presidential terms in a row.
Presidency (2024–present)
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Premier
Lai was elected president of the Republic of China on January 13, 2024. He received about 40% of the votes. He officially became president on May 20, 2024.
As president, Lai has continued Taiwan's "New Southbound Policy." This policy aims to strengthen ties with countries in Southeast Asia and South Asia. In June 2024, Taiwan signed an investment agreement with Thailand.
President Lai has said that Taiwan will continue to resist China's efforts to take control of the island. He has stressed that Taiwan is a sovereign country. He also hopes for talks with Beijing, even with ongoing tensions.
Political Views
In the past, Lai was known for strongly supporting Taiwan's independence. He once called himself a "pragmatic worker for Taiwanese independence." He also said it was possible to "love Taiwan while having an affinity to China."
Since then, he has changed his position somewhat. He now says there is no need to declare independence. This is because "Taiwan is already a sovereign, independent country called the Republic of China." Lai believes in making Taiwan's relationship with the United States stronger. He also wants to strengthen ties with other democratic countries. He thinks that both "Taiwan" and "Republic of China" can be used to refer to the country.
Personal Life
Lai married Wu Mei-ju in 1986. Wu worked for a power company called Taipower. She worked in Tainan until Lai became mayor. Then, she moved to Kaohsiung. The couple has two sons.
Lai's first grandson was born in the United States in 2020. This was while his son was studying there.
Honors
Taiwan:
Order of Dr. Sun Yat-sen with Grand Cordon
Order of Propitious Clouds with Special Grand Cordon
See also
In Spanish: Lai Ching‑te para niños
