The voting has begun across the Philippines as millions of Filipinos throng polling stations on May 9, Monday to elect a new president.
Turnout is expected to be high among the more than 65 million Filipinos eligible to vote.
George Garcia of the Commission on Elections said: “Blockbuster. The long lines are magnificent. Filipinos wanted to be heard and heard loudly,”
More than 60,000 security personnel have been deployed to protect polling stations and election workers.
Ten candidates are vying to succeed President Rodrigo Duterte in elections seen by many as a make-or-break moment for the Philippines’ democracy.
However, only Marcos Jr and his rival Leni Robredo, the incumbent vice president, have a credible chance of winning, according to independent survey firms. The son of former dictator Ferdinand Marcos, who remains the survey frontrunner to win the high-stakes election. Surveys indicate Marcos Jr, 64, will win more than half the votes, which would make him the first presidential candidate to secure an absolute majority since his father was overthrown.
People wearing masks began forming long queues before dawn to cast their votes when polling stations opened at 6:00 am (0200 UAE Monday) across the archipelago.
Presidential candidates cast vote
After bomb sniffer dogs swept the polling station, Marcos Jr arrived with his younger sister Irene to vote at Mariano Marcos Memorial Elementary School in the northern city of Batac. They were followed a short time later by their mother, Imelda.
Menawhile, Vice President Leni Robredo cast her ballot for Robredo at a school in Magarao municipality, in the central province of Camarines Sur.
Other candidates seeking the presidency include boxing legend Manny Pacquiao and former street scavenger turned actor Francisco ‘Isko’ Domagoso and veteran politician Panfilo ‘Ping’ Lacson.
Allegations of dirty tactics marred the final week of the presidential campaign, as Marcos Jr warned of electoral fraud while Robredo accused him of being a “liar”.
