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Indonesia's Prabowo declares victory as president after preliminary counts

Thursday, 15 February 2024 3:27 PM [ Last Update: Thursday, 15 February 2024 7:48 PM ]

Indonesian presidential candidate Prabowo Subianto displays a victory symbol on February 14, 2024. (Photo by AP)

Indonesia’s defense minister and former general Prabowo Subianto has declared victory after preliminary counts from government-approved pollsters indicated he would win high office with a majority in his third attempt.

The septuagenarian announced that this “victory must be a victory for all Indonesians” and that he would assemble a government "consisting of the best sons and daughters of Indonesia."

“We should not be arrogant. We should not be proud. We should not be euphoric. We still have to be humble. This victory must be a victory for all Indonesian people,” Subianto, 72, said in a speech broadcast on national television from a sports stadium.

His supporters, who gathered outside his residence in Jakarta, frolicked with joy after the preliminary polls indicated him winning.

In addition to the presidency, tens of thousands of candidates vied for approximately 20,000 national, provincial, and district parliamentary positions in the largest one-day electoral exercise in the world for the third-largest democracy in the world.

About 10,000 aspirants from 18 political parties eyed the national parliament’s 580 seats alone.

Polls close in presidential vote as Indonesia holds world’s largest single-day election

Indonesia concluded its elections as polling stations closed, with a massive voter turnout deciding the successor to President Joko Widodo, widely known as Jokowi, who completes his second term in office.

Candidate Anies Baswedan, who was considered the front-runner to compete against Subianto in the event of a second round, expressed his commitment to acknowledging the outcome solely upon its official confirmation.

"We have to respect the people's decision," he told reporters at his campaign headquarters after his rival claimed victory.

Subianto was previously defeated in the last two presidential elections by the widely admired incumbent leader, Joko Widodo.

For the 2024 polls, Subianto showcased himself as the successor to Widodo, whose son was his running mate, pledging to uphold his progressive agenda that has propelled Indonesia's remarkable economic growth and elevated it to the status of a middle-income nation.

Being the army general during the period of the Suharto dictatorship, which ended about 25 years ago, Subianto served as a special force commander in a unit linked to torture and disappearances, the allegations that he denies.

The outgoing president continues to enjoy immense popularity for his remarkable achievement of turning Indonesia into a burgeoning economic force through substantial investments in infrastructure and the successful attraction of foreign capital.

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