Voters went to the polls in the Philippine elections on Monday (8 November), with 40,000 troops standing by to prevent trouble after a violent four-month election campaign which claimed at least 161 lives.

Next day, with more than 200,000 votes counted of the estimated nine million votes cast, the main Opposition Liberal Party was maintaining a lead in the official returns.

Seven Liberal party candidates for the Senate and one ruling Nationalist Party candidate were out ahead. Eight Senate seats are contested in the Election.