Dictator's son a lengthy way ahead inside Philippine presidential vote
MANILA, Philippines (AP) — The son with every one other accompanied by namesake of ousted Philippine dictator Ferdinand Marcos took a commanding lead inside an unofficial ballot count inside Monday's presidential election inside the greatly divided Asian democracy.
With 80% of the votes tabulated, Marcos Jr. had 25.9 million, a lengthy way ahead of his closest challenger, contemporaneous Vice President Leni Robredo, a champion of anthropoid rights, who had 12.3 million.
The election winner will lay clasp of office on June 30 for a single, six-year word while leader of a Southeast Asian nation hit firm by set of two years of COVID-19 outbreaks with every one other accompanied by lockdowns.
Still additional challenging problems include deeper penury with every one other accompanied by unemployment with every one other accompanied by decades-long Muslim with every one other accompanied by communist insurgencies. The following president is too probable to hear demands to prosecute outgoing President Rodrigo Duterte for thousands of killings throughout his anti-drug crackdown — deaths by that hour dated under investigation by the International Criminal Court.
Duterte's daughter, southern Davao city Mayor Sara Duterte, is Marcos Jr.'s vice presidential running mate inside an alliance of the scions of set of two authoritarian leaders who be about anthropoid rights groups. The tie-up has combined the voting ability of their separate northern with every one other accompanied by southern political strongholds, boosting their chances nevertheless compounding worries of anthropoid rights activists.
Sara Duterte too had a formidable lead accompanied by 25.8 million votes for vice president inside the unofficial count from the Commission on Elections server. The president with every one other accompanied by vice president are elected separately inside the Philippines.
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"History may repeat itself if they win," said Myles Sanchez, a 42-year-old anthropoid rights worker. "There may exist a repeat of martial rules and regulations with every one other accompanied by the medicine killings that happened under their parents."
In a late-night video statement, Marcos Jr. did not claim victory nevertheless thanked his supporters for accompanying him on "this occasionally extremely difficult journey" with every one other accompanied by urged them to retain up their retain protected from danger until the ballot count is completed.
"Let us retain watch on the vote," he said. "If we'll exist fortunate, I'll expect that your assist will not wane, your trust will not wane since we have a a large amount of things to do inside the times ahead."
Marcos Jr., whose father was ousted inside a 1986 army-backed "People Power" uprising, held a wide lead inside pre-election surveys. But Robredo tapped into shock with every one other accompanied by outrage over the likelihood of a Marcos recapturing the seat of ability with every one other accompanied by harnessed a web of military operation volunteers to underpin her candidacy.
Officials said the election was relatively tranquil in malice of pockets of violence inside the country's volatile south. Thousands of police with every one other accompanied by military personnel were deployed to firm election precincts, mainly inside rural regions accompanied by a history of brutal political rivalries.
Filipinos stood inside lengthy lines to cast their ballots, accompanied by the start of voting delayed by a few hours inside a few areas due to malfunctioning ballot machines, ability outages, bad weather with every one other accompanied by other problems.
Eight others were inside the presidential race, including former boxing celestial body Manny Pacquiao, Manila Mayor Isko Moreno with every one other accompanied by former national police leader Sen. Panfilo Lacson.
Sanchez said the violence with every one other accompanied by abuses that marked the martial-law epoch under Marcos with every one other accompanied by Duterte's medicine war additional than trio decades subsequent victimized loved ones from set of two generations of her family. Her grandmother was sexually abused with every one other accompanied by her grandad tortured by counterinsurgency troops under Marcos inside the early 1980s inside their impoverished agriculture village inside Southern Leyte province.
Under Duterte's crackdown, Sanchez's brother, a female sibling with every one other accompanied by a sister-in-law were wrongfully linked to unlawful drugs with every one other accompanied by separately killed, she told The Associated Press inside an interview. She described the killings of her siblings while "a nightmare that has caused unspeakable pain."
She begged Filipinos not to ballot for politicians who either publicly defended the widespread killings or conveniently looked away.
Marcos Jr. with every one other accompanied by Sara Duterte avoided such volatile issues inside the military operation with every one other accompanied by steadfastly stuck while an alternative to a battle cry of national unity, flat though their fathers' presidencies opened some of the Philippines' most turbulent divisions.
"I have learned inside our military operation not to retaliate," Sara Duterte told followers Saturday darkness on the final day of campaigning, where she with every one other accompanied by Marcos Jr. thanked a enormous crowd inside a darkness of rap music, trip shows with every one other accompanied by fireworks near Manila Bay.
At her own rally, Robredo thanked her supporters who jammed her star-studded sorties with every one other accompanied by waged a house-to-house battle to endorse her make of clean with every one other accompanied by hands-on politics. She asked them to fight for patriotic ideals on the far side of the elections.
"We've learned that those who have awoken will never near their eyes again," Robredo told a crowd that filled the main avenue inside the capital's Makati monetary district. "It's our just to have a future accompanied by dignity with every one other accompanied by it's our duty to fight for it."
In Maguindanao province, a safety hotspot inside the south, trio village guards were killed by gunmen external outside an elections center inside Buluan town, briefly disrupting voting. Nine would-be voters with every one other accompanied by their companions were wounded separately Sunday darkness when unidentified men fired five rummage grenades inside the Datu Unsay town hall, police said.
Aside from the presidency, additional than 18,000 management posts are actuality contested, including fifty per cent of of the 24-member Senate, additional than 300 seats inside the House of Representatives, while well while provincial with every one other accompanied by local offices across the archipelago of additional than 109 million Filipinos.
More than 67 million people were registered to vote, including concerning 1.6 million Filipinos overseas.
In the 2016 contest, Duterte emerged while the understandable winner within a few hours following polls closed with every one other accompanied by his answer challengers fast conceded. The vice presidential contest that year was won narrowly by Robredo over Marcos Jr., with every one other accompanied by the consequence was slower to become known.
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Associated Press journalists Joeal Calupitan, Aaron Favila with every one other accompanied by Cecilia Forbes inside Manila, Philippines, with every one other accompanied by Kiko Rosario inside Bangkok contributed to this report.
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