Senator tops opinion polls:

Asia

Poe

A woman abandoned in a central Philippine church when a baby has topped an opinion poll barely two months ahead of elections to succeed President Benigno Aquino, an independent pollster said on Friday.

The May 9 election will be closely watched by investors, who fear the political succession in one of Asia’s fastest growing economies could derail gains made during Aquino’s six-year single term.

Grace Poe, 47, was the top-ranked candidate among 28 percent of 4,000 respondents in the March 15 to 20 survey commissioned by broadcaster ABS-CBN, a week after the Supreme Court ruled she was eligible to run for president.

The result cements Poe’s position as front-runner to become the third woman leader of the poor Southeast Asian state.

“Nearly three in 10 Filipino registered voters would elect Senator Grace Poe as the country’s next president if the May 2016 elections took place during the survey period,” said Ronald Holmes, president of independent pollster Pulse Asia. (RTRS)