In today’s installment of Listin Diario’s slow trickle of results from its recent poll conducted with the Spanish firm Sigma Dos, PRD party faithful were asked who they would vote for in primaries to decide the Party’s candidate for the year 2000 presidential elections. The results show a nine-point gain in the lead for former Agriculture Minister Hip?lito Mej?a since a similar poll conducted in December, from 57.5% up to 66.4%. Dropping nearly as much is ex-Santo Domingo mayor Rafael ("Fello") Suberv? Bonilla, who has gone from 26.8% in December to 15.5% in February. Of the other three "pre-candidates," Senator Milagros Ort?z Bosch (National District) has inched up from 6.8% to 8.0%, PRD Secretary-General Hatuey Decamps from 5.6% to 6.9%, and Senator Rafael Abinader (Santiago) from 0.7% to 2.7% [it should be noted that the rises for all three fall within the 2% margin of error for the poll]. Perhaps more interesting are the results of another question put to PRD respondents to the poll: asked who would be their second choice for PRD presidential candidate, Senator Ort?z Bosch emerged strongest – 50.2%, versus 16.6% for Mej?a, 10.6% for Suberv?, 8.4% for Decamps and 2.4% for Abinader. This may increase the chances that Senator Ort?z Bosch is selected as the PRD candidate for Vice President. Why is the Senator only the runner-up among party faithful when a broader poll last November suggested that the general public prefers her to Mej?a? The answer may be in another question put to party faithful in the Listin/Sigma Dos poll: would you prefer the PRD presidential candidate to be a man or women? A resounding 72.8% answered that they preferred a man, while 15.3% said they did not care which and 9.7% preferred a woman.
