Hieu Van Le


Hieu Van Le, is the 35th and current Governor of South Australia, in office since 1 September 2014. He served as the state's lieutenant-governor from 2007 to 2014. He also served as chair of the South Australian Multicultural and Ethnic Affairs Commission from 2006 to 2009. Le is the first person of Asian heritage to be appointed a state governor in Australia.

Early life

Le was born in Quảng Trị, South Vietnam, on 1 January 1954. He was raised and educated in Đà Nẵng, and attended Dalat University. He fled Vietnam from the new communist regime in November 1977, and came by boat to Darwin, Northern Territory, as a refugee in 1977 with his wife Lan and about 40 other people. Their two sons were born in Australia and are named after Australian cricketers Sir Donald Bradman and Kim Hughes.

Career

After arriving in Australia, Le attended the University of Adelaide, receiving a Master of Business Administration and an Economics degree. He was a senior investigator and manager with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission from the early 1990s until his retirement in 2009. He is also a member of the Australian Society of Certified Practising Accountants and a Fellow Member of the Financial Services Institute of Australasia.

Governor

Le's appointment as Governor of South Australia to replace Kevin Scarce was announced on 26 June 2014; he took office on 1 September, with Scarce's term expiring on 7 August. Le is a Catholic and credits his experiences as a refugee for strengthening his religious convictions. In June 2019, Premier Steven Marshall announced that Le's original term as governor had been extended by two years, to 31 August 2021.

Titles, styles and honours

Honours

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;Appointments