Official candidate Scioli leads Argentine presidential primary

BUENOS AIRES (Reuters) - Ruling party candidate Daniel Scioli was ahead in Argentina's presidential primary on Sunday with 36.3 percent, early results showed, with voters favouring the Buenos Aires governor's policy of gradual change following eight years of leftist government.

Scioli is in outgoing President Cristina Fernandez's Front for Victory party, and has promised to slowly modify her policies, which include heavy state control of the economy.

The presidential election, in which Fernandez is banned from running for a third consecutive term, is on Oct. 25. Running second in Sunday's primary was Mauricio Macri, the business-friendly mayor of the capital city whose goal is to do well enough in the October vote to force a November run-off.

He had 24.3 percent of the primary vote with 12.2 percent of ballots counted. Macri competed with two less popular members of his Cambiemos, or "Let's Change," coalition. Let's Change as a whole captured 30.6 percent. Scioli ran unopposed in the Front for Victory primary.

The primary is set up for each party to choose its presidential candidate, but with voters free to cross party lines, Sunday's vote was a dry run ahead of the October election.

(Additional reporting by Eliana Raszewski; Editing by Eric Walsh, Chris Reese and Michael Perry)