Lawrence Wong

For 68 years, one family has dominated Singapore’s political landscape. Lawrence Wong is bringing an end to that. He was named leader of the ruling People’s Action Party’s fourth-­generation leadership team in April and Deputy Prime Minister in June, anointing him as heir to current Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, the son of Singapore’s founding father Lee Kuan Yew. The impending transition will mark the first time Singapore doesn’t have a Lee either in charge or in a top cabinet post. Although Wong, the son of a salesman and a schoolteacher, is not expected to bring about any radical shake-ups, he has made headlines for his everyman persona—in one viral video, he’s seen playing “Hotel California” on guitar. But he also has vast political experience, with past portfolios including education, national development, and, most recently, finance.

Write to Charlie Campbell at charlie.campbell@time.com.