Presidential Popularity in Taiwan: from Ma Ying-jou to Tsai Ing-wen

• In Event: Public Opinion Research in Taiwan: Old Topics and New Angles

Abstract

Presidential popularity has attracted substantial scholarly attention because it is not only a manifestation of public sentiment for the president but also a contributing factor to presidential effectiveness. Interestingly, Taiwan presidents’ approval ratings seemed to decline rather fast after the election. Despite their high popularity immediately after elections, both Presidents Ma Ying-jeou of the Kuomintang (Nationalist Party or KMT) and Tsai Ing-wen of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) have only been able to maintain roughly 20% to 25% approval ratings throughout their tenure. How do Taiwan citizens evaluate their presidents? Employing a multilevel model that combines both micro-level survey data and macro-level contextual information, this study aims to examine factors contributing to presidential approval ratings in Taiwan.

Authors

• T.Y. Wang, Illinois State University

• Su-Feng Cheng, National Chengchi University