2007年VOA标准英语-Philippine Exit Polls Indicate Unexpected Oppos

By Douglas Bakshian
Manila
15 May 2007

Exit polls in the Philippines are suggesting that the opposition¹ did better than expected in Monday's congressional elections. However, President Gloria Arroyo² is still expected to keep control of the House of Representatives, where two attempts to impeach³ her were defeated by her allies. Meanwhile, violence continues to take its toll⁴ on the political process. Douglas Bakshian reports from Manila.

tally5 the votes on the floor during canvassing6 of votes for Monday's local election held in a gymnasium at Marawi city, Lanao Del Sur province in southern Philippines, 15 May 2007" hspace="2" src="/upimg/allimg/070605/1509040.jpg" width="173" vspace="2" border="0" />

Public school teachers tally the votes on the floor during canvassing of votes for Monday's local election held in a gymnasium at Marawi city, Lanao Del Sur province in southern Philippines, 15 May 2007

According to partial exit polls, opposition candidates are leading in eight of the 12 Senate races, while administration candidates are ahead in two, and independents in two others.

 

Before Monday's elections, analysts⁸ had forecast that the opposition would win only six Senate seats.

Whatever the final results in the Senate, experts expect the Arroyo administration to easily retain a two-thirds majority in the House of Representatives, where her supporters have twice defeated impeachment⁹ bids by the opposition.

 

One possible surprise to emerge from the Senate race is the projected victory of former navy lieutenant¹⁰ Antonio Trillanes. Trillanes, who is an opposition candidate, is in jail. He is accused of taking part in a coup¹¹ plot in 2003, but says he was only trying to expose military and government corruption¹². He campaigned from prison, and apparently¹³ made a strong impression in media interviews over the last few weeks.

 

A victory by Trillanes would go against the normal pattern in Philippine politics, which is traditionally dominated by major families and the occasional movie star or other celebrity¹⁴. Analyst⁷ Ramon Casiple of the Institute for Political and Electoral Reforms says this shows the public is receptive to candidates who stand for something.

 

 

"When people really have a real choice, as against a choice among the lesser¹⁵ evils, so called - among the traditional politicians - then they would prefer new faces, new people, who are promising¹⁶ or are fighting for something. Rather than the old tired politicians," said Casiple.

 

The Philippines is known for the "people power" movement that threw out dictator Ferdinand Marcos in 1986, and President Joseph Estrada in 2001. Casiple says this election shows that that spirit is still burning.

 

 

"Democracy in the Philippines is not dead, it is alive. But unfortunately, the one keeping it alive are the people, not yet their leaders," he said.

 

Meanwhile, election-related violence continues to take its toll. Two teachers died Tuesday in Batangas, south of Manila, when armed men attacked the school where they were counting ballots¹⁷ and set it on fire. At least 126 people have now been killed in election-related incidents.

At least 75 percent of the nation's 45 million voters cast ballots, which are being counted manually. Official results for the House are expected within a week, for the Senate in two weeks, and the results of thousands of local races are expected within days.

1 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

2 arroyo   

n.干涸的河床，小河

参考例句：

• She continued along the path until she came to the arroyo.她沿着小路一直走到小河边。
• They had a picnic by the arroyo.他们在干枯的河床边野餐过。

3 impeach   

v.弹劾；检举

参考例句：

• We must impeach the judge for taking bribes.我们一定要检举法官收受贿赂。
• The committee decided to impeach the President.委员会决定弹劾总统。

4 toll   

n.过路(桥)费；损失，伤亡人数；v.敲(钟)

参考例句：

• The hailstone took a heavy toll of the crops in our village last night.昨晚那场冰雹损坏了我们村的庄稼。
• The war took a heavy toll of human life.这次战争夺去了许多人的生命。

5 tally   

n.计数器，记分，一致，测量；vt.计算，记录，使一致；vi.计算，记分，一致

参考例句：

• Don't forget to keep a careful tally of what you spend.别忘了仔细记下你的开支账目。
• The facts mentioned in the report tally to every detail.报告中所提到的事实都丝毫不差。

6 canvassing   

v.（在政治方面）游说( canvass的现在分词 )；调查（如选举前选民的）意见；为讨论而提出（意见等）；详细检查

参考例句：

• He spent the whole month canvassing for votes. 他花了整整一个月四处游说拉选票。
• I'm canvassing for the Conservative Party. 我在为保守党拉选票。 来自辞典例句

7 analyst   

n.分析家，化验员；心理分析学家

参考例句：

• What can you contribute to the position of a market analyst?你有什么技能可有助于市场分析员的职务？
• The analyst is required to interpolate values between standards.分析人员需要在这些标准中插入一些值。

8 analysts   

分析家，化验员( analyst的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• City analysts forecast huge profits this year. 伦敦金融分析家预测今年的利润非常丰厚。
• I was impressed by the high calibre of the researchers and analysts. 研究人员和分析人员的高素质给我留下了深刻印象。

9 impeachment   

n.弹劾；控告；怀疑

参考例句：

• Impeachment is considered a drastic measure in the United States.在美国，弹劾被视为一种非常激烈的措施。
• The verdict resulting from his impeachment destroyed his political career.他遭弹劾后得到的判决毁了他的政治生涯。

10 lieutenant   

n.陆军中尉，海军上尉；代理官员，副职官员

参考例句：

• He was promoted to be a lieutenant in the army.他被提升为陆军中尉。
• He prevailed on the lieutenant to send in a short note.他说动那个副官，递上了一张简短的便条进去。

11 coup   

n.政变；突然而成功的行动

参考例句：

• The monarch was ousted by a military coup.那君主被军事政变者废黜了。
• That government was overthrown in a military coup three years ago.那个政府在3年前的军事政变中被推翻。

12 corruption   

n.腐败，堕落，贪污

参考例句：

• The people asked the government to hit out against corruption and theft.人民要求政府严惩贪污盗窃。
• The old man reviled against corruption.那老人痛斥了贪污舞弊。

13 apparently   

adv.显然地；表面上，似乎

参考例句：

• An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽，豁然开朗。
• He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。

14 celebrity   

n.名人，名流；著名，名声，名望

参考例句：

• Tom found himself something of a celebrity. 汤姆意识到自己已小有名气了。
• He haunted famous men, hoping to get celebrity for himself. 他常和名人在一起, 希望借此使自己获得名气。

15 lesser   

adj.次要的，较小的；adv.较小地，较少地

参考例句：

• Kept some of the lesser players out.不让那些次要的球员参加联赛。
• She has also been affected,but to a lesser degree.她也受到波及，但程度较轻。

16 promising   

adj.有希望的，有前途的

参考例句：

• The results of the experiments are very promising.实验的结果充满了希望。
• We're trying to bring along one or two promising young swimmers.我们正设法培养出一两名有前途的年轻游泳选手。

17 ballots   

n.投票表决( ballot的名词复数 )；选举；选票；投票总数v.（使）投票表决( ballot的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• They're counting the ballots. 他们正在计算选票。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The news of rigged ballots has rubbed off much of the shine of their election victory. 他们操纵选票的消息使他们在选举中获得的胜利大为减色。 来自《简明英汉词典》