Print

Mail

wiki links

Megawati edges ahead in seesaw Indonesian election

With almost 15 percent of the vote counted, President Megawati Sukarnoputri's party yesterday had a slight lead over its main rival, the Golkar Party of former dictator Suharto, in parliamentary elections.

The official tally from Monday's polls put Megawati Sukarnoputri's Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle at 20.45 percent of the estimated 124 million votes cast, with Golkar just behind at 19.94 percent.

Because of communication difficulties between the thou-sands of islands in the Indonesian archipelago, results from the polls are expected to continue trickling in over the next several days.

Earlier results had put Golkar in the lead. Analysts predicted the results would continue to seesaw as returns from different provinces arrive in Jakarta.

On Tuesday, the Washington-based National Democratic Institute released a private poll showing Golkar strongly ahead with 22.7 percent and Megawati's party with 18.8 percent.

It said the survey was reliable and identical polls had accurately predicted the outcome of elections in scores of countries worldwide.

Officials at Megawati's party have already conceded that its share of the vote will be way down from the 34 percent it won in the country's last election in 1999. Golkar won 22 percent that year.

The projected drop in the vote for Megawati's party was expected to dent her re-election prospects in the country's first direct presidential polls in July.

Indonesians voted Monday for a 550-seat lower house, a 128-seat upper house, and local and provincial councils. It was the second free election since Suharto's fall in 1998.

Megawati's party's poor showing has been interpreted as a reflection of voter frustration with Megawati, the daughter of the country's founding father Sukarno, who came into office in July 2001 promising reforms but failed to combat corruption or promote change.

Official results showed that a new party, formed recently by former security chief Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's and the small Islamic-based Party of Justice and Prosperity, are both doing well, having taken votes from Megawati and several moderate religious-based parties.
This story has been viewed 1910 times.