Lee Teng-hui

李登輝
Republic of China state institutions Nationalism Taiwan Taiwan 1923–2020 ○ Died of illness

First Taiwan-born president, who completed the democratic transition and became the first directly elected president

Born in 1923 to a Hakka family in Sanshi under Japanese rule, he studied at Kyoto Imperial University and served in the Imperial Japanese Army. As a student at National Taiwan University he twice joined and left the Chinese Communist Party in 1946–1948. With a Cornell doctorate in agricultural economics he joined the KMT in 1970 and, promoted by Chiang Ching-kuo, served as mayor of Taipei and governor of Taiwan Province before becoming vice-president in 1984. On Chiang’s death in 1988 he succeeded as president and KMT chairman, the first Taiwan-born head of state. He abolished the Temporary Provisions, led democratic reforms and in 1996 won the first direct presidential election. After leaving office he backed the pro-independence Taiwan Solidarity Union, was expelled from the KMT in 2001 and died in 2020.

Also known as: Li Denghui · Iwasato Masao

Activities and affiliations

Career Timeline