Taiwan's year-end Chiayi City mayoral race has turned into a two-way fight, and the opposition alliance is still the underdog against a deeply rooted DPP candidate.

• Five people registered, but the contest is really between the DPP's Wang Mei-hui and Chang Chi-kai, jointly backed by the KMT and the TPP.
• Wang has built local support over more than 20 years, from council aide to lawmaker, and leads on name recognition, especially with voters over 45.
• Chang is running on continuity with popular outgoing KMT mayor Huang Min-hui, who has endorsed him and appears on his campaign billboards.
• The KMT-TPP tie-up is the open question: KMT chair Cheng Li-wun admits the city is a problem, while TPP chair Huang Kuo-chang insists the alliance is solid.
• Local betting markets reportedly give Wang a lead of more than 25,000 votes, fueling talk about whether that reflects real sentiment or manipulation.

Outlook: Chang's camp says it is closing the gap by targeting younger voters, but Wang remains the favorite heading into the final stretch.