Presidential candidate Prabowo Subianto reacts while dancing as he claims victory after unofficial vote counts during an event to watch the results of the general election in Jakarta, Indonesia, February 14, 2024. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon
JAKARTA 鈥� After months of uncertainty, Indonesians on Thursday woke to a new presumed president, ex-special forces commander Prabowo Subianto, who appeared in unofficial counts to comfortably win the hotly contested election in a single round.
The 72-year-old defense minister declared before jubilant supporters late on Wednesday that it was a 鈥渧ictory for all Indonesians.鈥�
Quick ballot counts by independent pollsters showed he won nearly 60% of votes, surpassing pre-election projections of a slim majority. Such counts have proven accurate in past votes.
READ: Unofficial Indonesia election vote count shows early Prabowo lead
The veteran politician with a hardline military past had an insurmountable lead over rivals, ex-governors Anies Baswedan and Ganjar Pranowo, who trailed at least 33 points behind.
The national election agency is expected to announce official results by March 20.
鈥淗is apparent one-round victory should remove uncertainty over who will lead the next administration,鈥� said Barclays economist Brian Tan. 鈥淗e appears to be the outgoing President Joko Widodo鈥檚 choice of successor and has promised policy continuity, which should provide some reassurance to investors.鈥�
Jokowi, as the popular incumbent is known, did not explicitly endorse any candidate, but Prabowo鈥檚 running mate is the president鈥檚 eldest son Gibran Rakabuming Raka, who is set to be the youngest vice-president in Indonesia鈥檚 history.
The pair have pledged to continue Jokowi鈥檚 efforts to position the resource-rich G20 economy as an electric-vehicle hub, extend a massive infrastructure and social assistance push, and create millions of jobs.
READ: Indonesia presidential bets duke it out on TikTok
Second-place rival Anies, ex-governor of Jakarta who got 25% of the vote, said his team would wait for the official results and respect the people鈥檚 decision.
Both Anies鈥� and Ganjar鈥檚 teams earlier said they were probing allegations of 鈥渟ystematic and massive fraud鈥�, but did not provide evidence.
Analysts have said there were no signs of electoral fraud.
But the days leading up to the vote were marred by protests against Jokowi, criticized over political interference after he made highly publicized appearances with Prabowo, and after a last-minute court ruling tweaked eligibility criteria, enabling his son to join the leading ticket.
Jokowi鈥檚 allies have denied he meddled.
The world鈥檚 biggest single-day election saw nearly 259,000 candidates vie for 20,600 posts across the archipelago.
In the legislative contest, parties backing Prabowo had about 42% of the votes, while an alliance behind Anies had 27%, suggesting a Prabowo government could have strong parliamentary backing.
If confirmed, the new president will take office in October.