Indonesia vote: Jokowi wins second term, rival cries foul

Bloomberg

Indonesian President Joko Widodo won last month’s bitterly contested election by a double-digit margin, official results showed on Tuesday, an outcome rejected by his rival who threatened a legal challenge amid threats of street protests by his supporters.
Widodo, known as Jokowi, won 55.5 percent of the national vote, compared to his challenger Prabowo Subianto’s 44.5 percent, the General
Elections Commission said in Jakarta. Jokowi’s margin of victory was almost double his 2014 result against the same opponent, the data showed. The tally also confirmed unofficial quick counts from about a dozen independent pollsters.
Jokowi, 57, is expected to be sworn in for his second five-year tenure on October 20.
Prabowo, as Subianto is commonly known, said he “completely rejected” the result as the commission had made no effort to address complaints of election irregularities. The former general has repeatedly claimed victory, citing his own team’s survey of votes. Plans by his supporters to hold protest rallies prompted authorities to lock down parts of the capital, Jakarta, on Tuesday.
A candidate can challenge
the result in the nation’s Constitutional Court, Chairman
Arief Budiman told reporters. Prabowo, flanked by his running mate Sandiaga Uno, said in a televised address the pair will take legal action “to defend the sovereignty of the people, whose constitutional rights were robbed in the 2019 elections.”
The result should allow Jokowi to focus on steps to shield Southeast Asia’s largest economy from an escalating
US-China trade war that’s threatening to hurt growth and fuel a trade deficit. The nation’s stocks, bonds and the currency have all slumped in the past month as foreign investors grew concerned over the economic growth outlook. But on Tuesday, the Jakarta Composite Index jumped as much as 1.5 percent and is set for the biggest two-day gain since November 2018.

Religious Divide
More than 45,000 armed police are guarding the main offices of the General Elections Commission and the Election Supervisory Board in central Jakarta and other government offices, according to police spokesman Argo Yuwono.
Police have been placed on the highest security alert nationwide until May 25 and have urged people not to participate in rallies because militants linked to the IS were plotting to use the gatherings to launch attacks. Jokowi called for peace and unity, urging citizens to respect the will of the people and the democratic process. The president said he respected his opponent’s decision to challenge the verdict and pledged to “work hard to realise social justice for all Indonesians.”
“Jokowi kicks off his second term with a stronger mandate than in 2014,” said Hugo Brennan, principal political analyst with Verisk Maplecroft in
London. But he “will continue to face concerted opposition
from a minority of the political elite and wider electorate, as demonstrated by Prabowo’s ‘people power’ campaign,” Brennan said.