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Associated Press


Rodrigo Duterte
Despite his threats to kill criminals, obscene remarks and cursing of Pope Francis, Davao city Mayor Rodrigo Duterte, 71, has topped the pre-election polls. His pledge to end crime nationwide in three to six months has resonated among crime-weary Filipinos, but has been dismissed by police as undoable. President Benigno Aquino has campaigned against Duterte after the latter threatened to close Congress in case he wins and faces impeachment.
Duterte is open to talks with China on the sea feud and describes himself as a socialist wary of the US-Philippine security alliance. Communist rebels, he says, can play a role in his government if he wins.

Jejomar Binay
Elected vice president in 2010, Jejomar Binay was a human rights lawyer who helped fight dictator Ferdinand Marcos before serving as a longtime mayor of Manila’s financial district. Many regarded him as a strong contender for the presidency, but corruption allegations, which he denies, sullied his image. The 73-year-old may be charged with corruption when his vice presidential term ends.
Binay backs talks with China on territorial rifts and a stronger U.S. military presence. He regards peace talks as the best way to end decades of Muslim and communist insurgencies.
How will Benigno Aquino be remembered? Here are 10 events that shaped his presidency

Miriam Defensor-Santiago
A former trial court judge and immigration commissioner, Sen. Miriam Defensor-Santiago was diagnosed with stage-4 lung cancer in 2014 but proceeded to run for president after saying she has recovered. Unable to campaign fully due to her health condition, the 70-year-old Santiago has trailed in pre-election polls.
She was elected to serve as an International Criminal Court judge but passed the chance due to illness. The tough-talking senator says the Philippines should not be fully dependent on the U.S. militarily and backs a strengthening of the local military amid the sea dispute with Beijing.

Grace Poe
A political neophyte, Senator Grace Poe, 47, banks on the celebrity name she inherited from her movie parents, who adopted her after she was found abandoned as a newborn in a church. Her being a foundling and a naturalised American citizen once sparked attempts to nullify her candidacy in legal challenges that she hurdled.
The former preschool teacher backs Aquino’s policy on the sea rifts and an arbitration complaint against China, although she says she’ll try to engage Beijing constructively. If she wins, Poe says she’ll hold talks with communist rebels.

Mar Roxas
A US-educated investment banker and the richest Philippine presidential aspirant, Mar Roxas, 58, is banking on his clean image in a country where two presidents have been forced out and a third remains in detention on alleged corruption.
Aquino has endorsed the candidacy of Roxas, who in turn vows to continue his “straight path” style of leadership and support most of his policies, including allowing US forces access to local military camps amid the sea feud with China. Roxas, however, doesn’t favour the Philippines joining the U.S.-led Trans Pacific Partnership, fearing it will adversely impact local agriculture.


The five candidates vying to be Philippines’ next president

Cups feature the photos of the presidential candidates at a 7-Eleven convenience store in Quezon city, northeast of Manila. Photo: EPA

FILE - In this file photo taken April 29, 2016, presidential candidate Rodrigo Duterte answers questions from the media in Manila, Philippines. Duterte is one of five candidates in Monday's Philippine presidential election. The next Philippine president will inherit daunting security problems, including territorial rifts with China, Muslim and communist insurgencies and law and order concerns. (AP Photo/Bullit Marquez, File)

FILE - In this file photo taken on April 29, 2016, Mar Roxas, former Interior and Local Government Secretary gestures as he answers questions from reporters in suburban Quezon city, north of Manila, Philippines. Roxas is one of five candidates in Monday's Philippine presidential election. The next Philippine president will inherit daunting security problems, including territorial rifts with China, Muslim and communist insurgencies and law and order concerns. (AP Photo/Aaron Favila, File)

(160509) -- MAKATI CITY, May 9, 2016 (Xinhua) -- Presidential candidate Philippine Vice President Jejomar Binay waits for his turn to cast his vote inside a classroom turned into a polling precinct at a school in Makati City, the Philippines, May 9, 2016. Millions of Filipinos began casting their votes in polling centers across the country on Monday to pick a new president. (Xinhua/Rouelle Umali) ****Authorized by ytfs****

epa05295689 Filipino Presidential candidate, Senator Grace Poe show her receipt from the vote counting machine inside a public school turned into a polling precinct in San Juan city, east of Manila, Philippines, 09 May 2016 Poe is one of the top presidential candidates as more than 54 million Filipinos were registered to vote on 09 May to elect a new president, vice president and more than 18,000 regional and local positions. EPA/FRANCIS R. MALASIG

FILE - In this file photo taken July 13, 2011, Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago gestures during a Philippine Senate hearing in Manila, Philippines. Defensor Santiago is one of five candidates in Monday's Philippine presidential election. The next Philippine president will inherit daunting security problems, including territorial rifts with China, Muslim and communist insurgencies and law and order concerns. (AP Photo/Bullit Marquez, File)

News

Asia

Southeast Asia

A look at the presidential hopefuls, with their positions on the South China Sea territorial disputes, the US pivot to Asia and ending decades of communist and Muslim insurgencies
