Environmentalist Silva forerunner of Brazil election: poll

Marina Silva, an environmentalist and the founder of the Sustainability Network Party, would win the Brazilian presidential election of 2018 if it were held today, according to a survey published on Sunday.

The survey, carried out by pollster Datafolha, shows that Silva, who came in the third place during the 2014 election, would obtain between 21 percent and 24 percent of the votes, depending on who is the opposition candidate for the Brazilian Social Democratic Party (PSDB).

If the PSDB candidate was Senator Aecio Neves, Silva would get 21 percent of the votes, while Neves would receive 19 percent with former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, from the ruling Workers' Party, gaining 17 percent.

If the PSDB candidate turned out to be Sao Paulo Governor Geraldo Alckmin or Senator Jose Serra, Silva would secure a more solid win with 23 percent and 24 percent of the votes, respectively.

The survey shows a clear increase in support for Silva since Aecio Neves and Lula were accused of having been involved in a corruption network within the government-owned oil company Petrobras.

Silva, a former senator and environment minister during Lula's administration, has gained international reputation as a defender of the Amazon rainforest. She has run in both 2010 and 2014 presidential elections, respectively.

The survey was carried out on March 17 and March 18 and polled 2,794 people from 171 municipalities throughout the country. Endi