MEXICO CITY, April 21
(Xinhua) -- Paraguayans are going to
the polls Sunday to elect a
president, lawmakers and governors among
other officials.
Voting began
at 7:00 a.m. local time (1100 GMT)
and the 1,046 polling stations will
remain open till 4:00 p.m, electoral
officials said.
More than three
million Paraguayans, at home and
abroad, are registered to vote for
a president, a vice president, 45
senators and 80 deputies, 17governors and 17
local councils, as well as the
country's representatives to the
regional Parliament of the Southern
Common Market (Mercosur).
Under
the constitution, the president, also
the head of the government, is
elected by popular vote with a
five-year term. Candidates win by
simple majority in the one-round
voting.
This year, 11 candidates
are running for the
presidency.
Surveys show the
top three candidates are
businessman-turned-politician Horacio Cartes, ruling
Liberal Party candidate Efrain Alegre
and TV presenter Mario Ferreiro, of
the left-leaning coalition Avanza
Pais.
The latest pre-election
survey had Cartes leading with more
than 45 percent support. The former
tobacco tycoon is Paraguay's former
long-time ruling Colorado Party candidate,
having joined the party in
2009.
Alegre, the second most
favored candidate was trained as a
lawyer and has sat in both of
Paraguay's houses of parliament. He
also served as minister of public
works and communications.
The
winner is scheduled to take office
on Aug. 15, succeeding Federico Franco,
who has led the country since
former president Fernando Lugo's
impeachment.
Lugo was ousted in
June 2012 by the opposition-controlled
legislature after a police eviction of
farmers left 17 people
dead.
The impeachment was
largely seen in South America as
a disguised coup d'etat and
some regional bodies, including the
Mercosur, suspended Paraguay's membership
over the issue.
To ensure
a fair and transparent election,
leading regional bodies have sent
monitors to the country.
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