With half the ballots counted, Prabowo Subianto had 56.89 percent of the vote in Indonesia’s presidential election, more than double his nearest rival and enough to win outright in the first round. The election commission’s website showed the figures on Friday.
Former Jakarta governor Anies Baswedan stood at 25.27 percent. Former Central Java governor Ganjar Pranowo had 17.84 percent.
Prabowo, the 72-year-old defence minister and a former general, wrote on Instagram late Thursday: “Thank God, we must be grateful and continue to monitor the KPU’s official results.” Days earlier he had claimed a “victory for all Indonesians” after government-approved pollsters, whose earlier numbers have proved reliable, showed him headed for a first-round majority. Both rivals said they would wait for the official result. Neither has conceded.
To win outright he needs more than 50 percent of the national vote and at least a fifth of ballots in more than half of the country’s 38 provinces. Analysts say his victory is almost assured. The official result is not due until late March.
Congratulations have already arrived. Prabowo said Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese had phoned him, along with the leaders of Singapore, Malaysia and Sri Lanka, and posted a photo of himself with a phone to his ear. Outgoing president Joko Widodo, known as Jokowi, told reporters Thursday that he had met Prabowo the previous evening to offer his “congratulations.” Jokowi’s eldest son, 36-year-old Gibran Rakabuming Raka, ran as Prabowo’s running mate.
