Former President Lee Teng-hui has died at the age of 97. Lee passed away last Thursday at Taipei Veterans General Hospital due to multiple organ failure. He had been in hospital for nearly six months prior to his death.  

Lee is Taiwan’s first democratically-elected president, earning him the nickname “Mr. Democracy”. He was hand-picked in 1984 by former President Chiang Ching-kuo to serve as his vice president. Lee became president when Chiang died, four years later. Then, in 1990, Lee was elected president by the now-defunct National Assembly. But while Lee was appointed early on, his popularity ensured his victory in Taiwan’s first direct presidential election, held in 1996. Lee won the race with 54% of the vote. He stepped down in May, 2000, after twelve years in office.

Lee was expelled from his party -- the KMT -- in 2001, for his role in helping found the pro-independence Taiwan Solidarity Union after he had left office. This small political party is an ally of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party. Though Lee was never an official member of the Taiwan Solidarity Union, the party has long considered Lee its spiritual leader.