Tue, May 19, 2026 page2

• Lai has 56.4% approval rating, DPP poll shows

  • By Chen Yun and Esme Yeh / Staff reporter, with staff writer
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  President William Lai (賴清德) has a 56.4 percent approval rating and a 51.8 percent trust rating, a poll released yesterday by the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) showed.

  More than 70 percent of people surveyed in the poll, released ahead of Lai’s second anniversary in office tomorrow, said they were satisfied with his policies aimed at easing the burden on people, DPP Policy Research Department director Rosalia Wu (吳思瑤) told a news conference held jointly with DPP spokesman Justin Wu (吳崢) in Taipei.

  Taiwan’s economic growth in the first quarter of this year hit a 39-year high at 13.69 percent, Rosalia Wu said.

  

  Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Policy Research Department director Rosalia Wu, right, speaks as DPP spokesman Justin Wu looks on at a news conference in Taipei yesterday.

  Photo: Wang Yi-sung, Taipei Times

  The unemployment rate was 3.34 percent, a 25-year low, while Taiwan’s GDP per capita has surpassed those of Japan and South Korea, she said.

  The poll showed that respondents highly approved of the Lai administration’s eight major policies, she said.

  Of the policies, “reducing the burden on people” had a satisfaction rate of 74 percent, followed by 70.7 percent for “social welfare,” 64.5 percent for “stabilizing prices,” 59.9 percent for “safeguarding sovereignty,” 55.6 percent for “economic growth,” 54.7 percent for “national defense,” 54.6 percent for “foreign affairs” and 53.9 percent for “cross-strait policies,” Rosalia Wu said.

  The satisfaction rates all surpassed 50 percent, she added.

  The poll showed that 47 percent of pan-blue camp supporters approved of the government’s social welfare schemes, she said.

  The Lai administration’s overall approval rating was 56.4 percent, while Lai’s personal trust rating was 51.8 percent, Justin Wu said.

  Regarding the core presidential power of defending national sovereignty — such as preventing infiltration by the Chinese Communist Party or enhancing national security investigations — 59.9 percent of respondents said they approved of Lai, he said.

  Meanwhile, 54.7 percent said they approved of Lai’s role in national defense policies, including boosting defense budgets, promoting defense autonomy and building indigenous submarines; 54.6 percent approved of Lai’s foreign affairs, such as visiting allies despite Chinese pressure; and 53.9 percent approved of his cross-strait policies, such as requiring officials to register trips to China or requiring Chinese spouses running for election to relinquish their Chinese citizenships, Justin Wu said.

  The results showed that a broad consensus had been reached between the public and the government on the goals of defending sovereignty, expanding diplomatic space and protecting Taiwan’s democratic system, he added.

  Conducted by the DPP’s polling center from Monday to Wednesday last week, the poll surveyed Taiwanese aged 20 or older, collecting 1,071 valid responses, with a margin of error of 3 percentage points.
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