HELSINKI (AP) — Ex-Prime Minister Alexander Stubb was projected to win the first round of Finland's presidential election on Sunday and face runner-up Pekka Haavisto in a runoff next month. Finnish public broadcaster YLE projected that Stubb won the first round of the presidential election with 27.3% of the votes, while Haavisto, an ex-foreign minister, took second place with 25.8%. Recent polls suggest that former Prime Minister Alexander Stubb, 55, and ex-Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto, 65, are the leading contenders. The president also acts as the supreme commander of the Finnish military, a particularly important duty in Europe's current security environment. About 4.5 million citizens were eligible to vote for Finland’s new head of state from an array of nine candidates — six men and three women.

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