TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — New Taipei Mayor Hou Yu-ih (侯友宜) has emerged as the front-runner in the presidential election for January 2024, according to a poll carried out by the Taiwanese Public Opinion Foundation (TPOF).
Incumbency advantage propelled Hou of the Kuomintang (KMT) to a second term in the Nov. 26 local elections. He claimed a resounding win, or 62.42% of the votes, over Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP).
Of the polled, 38.7% said they would vote for Hou, while Vice President Lai Ching-te (賴清德) received 29% support, and Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) 17.8%. About 8.1% said they had not decided, and 6.4% did not reply or did not know.
Lai has announced his bid for leadership of the DPP after President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) resigned to take responsibility for the rout of the party at the local elections. Ko, chairman of the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) and whose second term ends next week, has long suggested he will throw his hat into the ring of the presidential race.
According to TPOF Chairman You Ying-lung (游盈隆), Hou leads in all age groups in the survey. Municipality-wise, Lai beat Hou only in Tainan, the DPP base, while the latter enjoyed the most support in 21 other cities and counties.
In terms of political leanings, 80% of DPP supporters would back Lai and 79% of KMT supporters favored Hou. Ko gained 57% of support from those identifying with TPP.
The poll, conducted Dec. 12-13, received 1,070 valid responses. It has a 95% confidence level and a margin of error of 3 percentage points.