(Angus Reid Global Monitor) - Luis Fortuño of the New Progressive Party (PNP) holds the upper hand in Puerto Rico’s gubernatorial election, according to a poll by Ipsos. 41 per cent of respondents would vote for Fortuño in this month’s ballot.

Incumbent governor Aníbal Acevedo-Vilá of the Popular Democratic Party (PPD) is a close second with 38 per cent, followed by Rogelio Figueroa of the Puerto Ricans for Puerto Rico Party (PPR) with seven per cent, former governor Pedro Rosselló with six per cent, and Edwin Irazarry Mora of the Puerto Rican Independence Party (PIP) with five per cent.

In the 2004 election, a recount was necessary to determine the winner. Final results gave Acevedo-Vilá 48.39 per cent of the vote, and Rosselló 48.23 per cent.

In March 2008, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) charged Acevedo-Vilá and 12 other people with 19 counts of corruption related to campaign financing and conspiracy to violate federal electoral legislation. In August, the FBI charged the governor with five more counts related to the same actions. Acevedo-Vilá has repeatedly claimed he is innocent, and alleges he is the victim of a political conspiracy.

On Oct. 26, Fortuño expressed confidence in a victory, saying, "The momentum is incredible, each day that passes, the support growths more and more, the tendency is clear, there are definitely triumph and glory spirits in the air, on November 4 Puerto Rico will move towards the road of change."

Puerto Rico’s gubernatorial election is scheduled for Nov. 4.

Polling Data

Who would you vote for in the gubernatorial election?

Source: Ipsos
Methodology: Telephone interviews with 802 Puerto Rican adults, conducted from Oct. 24 to Oct. 27, 2008. Margin of error is 3 per cent.

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