Lai Ching-te, Taiwan’s president-elect, has steered the island toward democracy and away from China

Lai Ching-te is Taiwan’s president-elect who has vowed to safeguard the Asian island’s de-facto independence from China and further align it with other democracies

TAIPEI, Taiwan -- Lai Ching-te, Taiwan’s president-elect, has vowed to safeguard the island’s de-facto independence from China and further align it with other democracies.

Lai, 64, emerged victorious in elections Saturday on the island of 23 million people that China claims as its own. He is currently vice president with the Democratic Progressive Party, which has rejected China’s sovereignty claims over Taiwan.

As he faced his supporters Saturday night, Lai vowed Taiwan would “continue to walk side by side with democracies from around the world.”

“We are telling the international community that between democracy and authoritarianism, we will stand on the side of democracy,” he said.

Lai has vowed to strengthen the island’s defense and economy, which depends heavily on trade with China. He has also made an effort to soften his earlier stance as a “pragmatic worker for Taiwan independence.”