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About ten days before elections in the East Asian island nation of Taiwan, surveys show that the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) is still in the lead. According to a poll by the United Daily News newspaper on Tuesday, DPP candidate William Lai was ahead of his conservative Kuomintang rival Hou Yu-ih (27 percent) with 32 percent. Ko Wen-je of the Taiwan People’s Party, which was only founded in 2019, received 21 percent. Lai also led in other investigations, such as TVBS’s on Monday.

The population of the island republic with more than 23 million inhabitants is called on January 13 to elect a new president and a new parliament. Current President Tsai Ing-wen is no longer active after two terms in office. The latest surveys will likely be the last before election polls are no longer allowed to be reported from Wednesday until the end of the election.

Who will rule the capital Taipei in the future will likely also influence the relationship between Taiwan and its powerful neighbor China. Under Tsai, contact between the governments of the two countries was severed. The Communist Party in Beijing, which considers Taiwan part of China, views the DPP as separatists and repeatedly announces reunification – by military means if necessary. Other parties in Taiwan, such as the Kuomintang, are considered more China-friendly. (sda/dpa)