Taiwan's President Lai Ching-te is gaining public support three months before nationwide local elections — good news for his government, though it may not last.

• A new poll puts Lai's approval at 51.4% and disapproval at 42.3%, a shift after months of the two running even.
• The gain matters because Taiwan votes in nationwide local elections in about three months.
• The poll comes from a new outfit, Taiwan Public Sentiment Survey, set up by pollster Dai Li-an after he split with Mirror News over a withheld Kaohsiung mayoral poll.
• Taiwan's two most-watched pollsters have both been disrupted this year, leaving foreign analysts short of reliable numbers on the island.
• The new survey uses the same methods and the same call center as the old one, which should keep the data comparable.

Outlook: Whether Lai holds this lead through the autumn campaign is the key question for his party's chances in the local races.