Taipei, Sept. 5 (CNA) President Tsai Ing-wen on Tuesday appointed Tainan Mayor Lai Ching-te as premier, replacing Lin Chuan, who resigned a day earlier.
The 57-year-old Lai was a physician at National Cheng Kung University Hospital in Tainan before entering politics in the 1990s. He won a seat in the then-National Assembly in 1996, and two years later became a Democratic Progressive Party member of the Legislative Yuan.
Lai was subsequently reelected as lawmaker three times in 2001, 2004, and 2008. In total, he served 11 years as a legislator, and was rated the best lawmaker four times in a row by the Taipei-based Citizen Congress Watch.
In 2010, he was elected Tainan mayor. He is currently serving a second term in that post, enjoying high approval ratings.
