Readers prefer Assange over Trump as TIME Person of the Year

Though initially both Trump and Assange were tied in terms of votes, Assange pulled ahead to 10 per cent shortly

New York, Nov 22: Wikileaks founder Julian Assange has overtaken President-elect Donald Trump for the lead in the online poll of who readers think should be TIMEs Person of the Year in 2016.

As of 1:00 p.m. Eastern Time on Monday, Assange and Trump were deadlocked with 9 per cent of all the "yes" votes cast by participants, but Assange pulled ahead to 10 per cent shortly after noon, Time reported.

Wikileaks made headlines regularly during 2016 presidential election by releasing information, including leaked internal Democratic National Committee correspondence and messages from the account of Hillary Clinton's campaign manager John Podesta.

Earlier in the year, a United Nations panel found that Assange had been "arbitrarily detained" in London, where he remains in the Ecuadorian embassy in fear of extradition to Sweden on rape charges if he leaves.

Each year, TIME selects the person who has, for better or for worse, impacted the news the most in the past year.

The magazine's editors always make the final Person of the Year selection, but this poll is a way for readers to voice their own opinions on who has made the greatest impact on the world in 2016.

IANS