TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taoyuan Mayor Chang San-cheng (張善政) leads two potential DPP challengers in a new survey.
The poll by CNews, released Thursday, shows Chang defeating Presidential Office Deputy Secretary-General Ho Chih-wei (何志偉) and DPP Legislator Wang Yi-chuan (王義川) in hypothetical matchups, per NOWNews. Chang leads Ho by 5.1 percentage points and Wang by 7.4 points, though roughly 20% of respondents remain undecided in both scenarios.
Comparing the two potential DPP contenders, Ho and Wang have similar favorability ratings of about 27%. Wang’s unfavorability rating stands at 19.3%, about 1.6 percentage points higher than Ho’s. In a direct matchup between the two, Ho leads Wang by 2.7 percentage points.
Ho draws more support from TPP and KMT supporters, while Wang attracts relatively more backing from DPP and TPP voters. However, 48.7% of respondents said they were undecided between the two.
The survey also measured public views of Chang’s performance as mayor. About 55.3% of respondents approved of his governance, while 23.7% disapproved and 21% were undecided.
Polling analysts said Chang’s relatively strong approval rating could pose a challenge for either DPP contender. They noted that while Ho currently holds a narrow lead over Wang, the primary race remains open.
Media commentator Hsu Chin-huang (徐嶔煌) said the high share of undecided respondents suggests both candidates still have room to raise their public profiles, per CNews. DPP Taoyuan City Councilor Wei Yun (魏筠) echoed the view, describing the competition between Ho and Wang as still in its early stages, per CNews.
DPP Taoyuan City Councilor Li Tsung-hao (李宗豪) noted that Wang and Ho draw support from different voter bases, adding that consolidating support within the DPP and presenting policy proposals for Taoyuan could prove key in the mayoral race.
Meanwhile, political commentator Huang Yang-ming (黃揚明) criticized the poll’s methodology, per Storm Media. He noted that respondents identifying as DPP supporters made up about 38.5% of the sample, higher than the share in a 2023 survey conducted by the same outlet.
Huang argued that if Wang received 34.4% support among those respondents, Chang’s lead over him could be larger than the poll suggests. He added that, considering factional dynamics within the DPP, Wang may be more likely to secure the party’s nomination, per NOWNews.
The survey was conducted March 2–3 among 1,068 respondents and has a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points at the 95% confidence level.
