Tough mayor likely to lead Philippines
MANILA, Philippines — A brash and tough-talking mayor, who has pledged to kill suspected criminals and end crime within six months, looked set to become the next president of the Philippines after taking an unassailable lead in an unofficial vote count in Monday’s elections.
Rodrigo Duterte, the mayor of southern Davao city, had secured more than 14.4 million votes, according to a count of 87 per cent of precincts nationwide. The closest of his four main rivals, former interior secretary Mar Roxas, had 8.6 million votes. Final results are expected today.
A victory by Duterte would amount to a massive political shift in the Philippines. Starting as an outsider, Duterte built his popularity with radical pledges to eliminate poverty and end corruption and crime. He has a reputation for fighting crime as mayor of Davao for 22 years, but has been accused of ordering extrajudicial killings to do this.
On the last day of campaigning Saturday, he made clear his intentions.
“All of you who are into drugs, you sons of bitches, I will really kill you,” Duterte, 71, a former prosecutor, told a rally. “I have no patience, I have no middle ground. Either you kill me or I will kill you idiots.”
Among the other presidential candidates, Sen. Grace Poe had 8.1 million votes and Vice-President Jejomar Binay had 4.8 million, according to the partial unofficial results.
In the vice-presidential race, Sen. Ferdinand Marcos Jr., the son of the former dictator, led with 12.6 million votes in the unofficial count. He was followed by Rep. Leni Robredo, who had 12.5 million votes.