Rodrigo Duterte looked set to become the next president of the Philippines last night as partial results indicated that the strongman mayor of the city of Davao had won about 39 per cent of the vote in yesterday’s election.
Estimates from elections watchdog Comelec, based on an unofficial count of almost 80 per cent of the ballots, suggested Mr Duterte was set for a landslide victory, with 13.7m votes by midnight — more than 5m ahead of his closest rival.
Former senator Grace Poe, a one-time frontrunner who slipped into third place, conceded defeat to Mr Duterte late last night. “I’m giving way, I respect the results,” she told a news conference.