Philippines: Son of ousted dictator leads prez polls

The son and namesake of ousted Philippine dictator Ferdinand Marcos took a commanding lead in an unofficial vote count in Monday’s presidential election in the deeply divided Asian democracy. With more than 77% of the votes tabulated, Marcos Jr had 25 million, far ahead of his closest challenger, current vice president Leni Robredo, a champion of human rights, who had 11.9 million. The winner will take office on June 30 for a single, six-year term as leader of a Southeast Asian nation hit hard by two years of Covid-19 pandemic and lockdowns. Still more challenging problems include deeper poverty and unemployment and decades-long Muslim and communist insurgencies. Officials said the election was relatively peaceful despite pockets of violence in the country’s volatile south. Thousands of police and military personnel were deployed to secure election precincts, especially in rural regions with a history of violent political rivalries.