A NEW OPINION poll has shown that Labour’s presidential candidate Michael D Higgins still leads the way ahead of the election next month but the survey was carried out before Sinn Féin’s Martin McGuinness entered the race.

A Millward Brown Landowne poll for tomorrow’s Sunday Independent was conducted over a two week period to last Wednesday and finds Higgins ahead on 32 per cent, unchanged from the last poll.

He is followed by independent David Norris on 19 per cent (up one), whose name on the ballot paper is not certain but who has continued to garner support despite being out of the race for over a month before re-entering yesterday.

Forty per cent of voters  favour a comeback by Norris, up six per cent from August, whilst 43 per cent are opposed.

Mary Davies is up to 18 per cent from 13 per cent followed by Fine Gael’s Gay Mitchell on 17 per cent (down seven per cent) and independent Seán Gallagher on 14 per cent, up three.

For the political parties, Fianna Fáil sees its support fall to 10 per cent behind Sinn Féin on 11 per cent in the latest poll.  Fine Gael is still the most popular party, leading the poll on 40 per cent whilst Labour is on 20 per cent.

Independents have a 17 per cent share of the vote followed by the Green Party on two per cent.

Poll: Who do you want to be the next President of Ireland? >