TAIPEI, Jan. 11 (CGTN) -- Taiwan's leader Tsai Ing-wen on Friday announced Su Tseng-chang, the former chairman of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), as the island's new executive head at a news conference, local media reported.

This appointment came after the resignation of Lai Ching-te, former head of Taiwan's executive authority, who declared to step down along with the entire administrative body in response to DPP's local election defeats in November.

In the election, Taiwan's ruling DPP lost mayoral elections in key cities to the opposition Kuomintang (KMT).