A survey released by the TVBS poll center yesterday on the approval ratings of the heads of the nation’s six special municipalities placed Tainan Mayor William Lai (賴清德) of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) first with 76 percent, independent Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) second with 70 percent and Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chu (陳菊) of the DPP in third place with 68 percent.
Fourth was New Taipei City Mayor Eric Chu (朱立倫) of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) with 50 percent, while Taichung Mayor Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) and Taoyuan Mayor Cheng Wen-tsan (鄭文燦), both members of the DPP, where fifth and sixth with 43 percent and 42 percent respectively.
The survey was conducted to gauge residents’ satisfaction with the six mayors as Friday marks 100 days since they were sworn in on Dec. 25 last year.
Photo: Lai Hsiao-tung, Taipei Times
The survey included ratings on satisfaction with the mayors’ policies, satisfaction with their administration, residents’ pride in their cities, faith in the mayors’ future governance, their boldness, their ability to communicate and coordinate, their integrity, their understanding of public opinion and their ability to handle crises.
Despite only gaining a 79 percent approval rating for being bold, second only to Ko, Lai held the top rating in all the other categories, with nearly 80 percent of Tainan residents saying his integrity was not in question and more than 70 percent saying that Lai understands the residents of the city and is capable of handling crises.
Sixty-nine percent said Lai was capable of negotiating and coordinating city affairs, the survey showed.
Although Ko held the highest boldness rating of 83 percent, only 35 percent felt that Ko was capable of negotiating and coordinating city affairs, while 50 percent felt that his negotiation techniques were sub-par, the survey showed.
Sixty-nine percent were satisfied with the Tainan administration team and 63 percent of Kaohsiung residents were satisfied with Chen’s administrative team, while the Taipei administrative team received a 61 percent approval rating.
Personal approval ratings for Lai and Ko were evidently higher than satisfaction with their administrative teams, showing that both have great personal charisma, the results suggested.
Though Lai led Ko by 6 percent age points in satisfaction with policy, Lai said he had had a previous term to help solidify his position, while Ko was a new mayor, adding that he admired Ko for his boldness and that they both could learn much from each other.
The survey showed Chu held a 50 percent approval rating, with 20 percent disapproving and 30 percent remaining neutral.
While analysts said that Chu’s disapproval rating, the highest amongst the six mayors, could have something to do with him being KMT chairman, Chu yesterday responded by saying that he would work harder and seek to improve his image if “there is dissatisfaction about anything.”
Chu’s ability to communicate and coordinate city affairs, at 64 percent, was his most affirmed quality, the survey showed, while nearly 60 percent of respondents believed in his personal integrity and his ability to handle crises.
Chen received a 68 percent approval rating on governance and 75 percent for her boldness, the survey showed, while almost 70 percent affirmed her ability to handle crises, her ability to communicate and coordinate city affairs, as well as her understanding of public opinion.
The survey was conducted from March 10 through Monday last week targeting residents 20 years old and above, with 820 to 852 valid responses per municipality, with a margin of error of 3.4 percentage points.
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