The Kuomintang’s commanding lead in the 2026 local elections stems primarily from its ongoing cooperation agreement with the Taiwan People’s Party, which coordinates candidate nominations across most races and builds on the opposition’s legislative majority since 2024. The ruling Democratic Progressive Party enters the November vote with persistently low presidential approval ratings and lingering effects from its 2022 local setbacks plus recent recall failures. KMT incumbents and joint slates hold structural advantages in multiple counties and municipalities, while the DPP struggles to consolidate support amid policy gridlock. Late developments such as major scandals, sharp shifts in cross-strait tensions, or unusually high turnout in DPP strongholds could still narrow the gap before election day.