Taiwan opposition presidential candidate Ma Ying-jeou has maintained a comfortable lead over his sole opponent in the run-up to the March presidential election, opinion surveys showed Monday, reported dpa. Ma, of the Nationalist Party, or Kuomintang (KMT), is leading ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) presidential candidate Frank Hsieh by 28 percentage points, according to the opinion poll conducted by United Daily News. Of the 1,190 eligible voters surveyed, 49 per cent backed Ma, while 21 per cent supported Hsieh, with 28 per cent remaining undecided, the result of the United Daily poll showed. In another survey by the Taipei-based China Times daily, Ma is leading Hsieh by 26 points with 43 per cent of 1,344 eligible voters backing him versus 23 per cent for Hsieh. Some 29 per cent of the respondents have yet to decide who to support, the survey showed. A third survey by cable news network TVBS showed a 20-point gap between Ma and Hsieh, with the Ma garnering support by 49 per cent of 986 respondents against 29 per cent for the ruling party candidate. Some 22 per cent have yet to decide who to support. All three surveys were conducted right after the first televised debate between Ma and Hsieh on Sunday. The two candidates debated a variety of issues, ranging from Taiwan's sovereignty, economy, culture, to the birth rate and gay rights. They will have another debate on March 9 before the presidential election is to be held on March 22. Hsieh's independence-leaning DPP suffered its worst election setback since it was formed in 1986 during last month's parliament elections, taking just 27 of the 113 parliament seats. Ma's KMT was the biggest winner in that race, gaining 81 seats to become the majority.
