Lai Ching-te (Chinese: 賴清德; pinyin: Là i Qīngdé; born 6 October 1959), also known as William Lai, is a Taiwanese politician, physician, and nephrologist who has served as the eighth president of the Republic of China since 2024. A member of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), he has been the party's chairman since 2023.
Lai was born in Taipei County to a working-class family. He studied medicine at National Taiwan University, National Cheng Kung University, and, in 2003, earned his master's degree from Harvard University in public health. After practicing medicine as a spinal cord injury expert, Lai ran in the 1996 Legislative Yuan election, winning a seat representing Tainan City. After being re-elected to the Legislative Yuan four consecutive times, he successfully ran for Mayor of Tainan in 2010 and served as mayor for seven years, winning reelection in 2014. In September 2017, President Tsai Ing-wen announced Lai would replace outgoing premier Lin Chuan.