N. Sumatra reelects Rizal Nurdin as governor

Apriadi Gunawan, The Jakarta Post, Medan, North Sumatra

The North Sumatra legislative council voted on Monday 51 to 33 to reelect Rizal Nurdin as governor for another five years, in one of the few major regional election victories for the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan).

Rizal won the gubernatorial race along with his running mate Rudolf Pardede, who chairs the PDI Perjuangan's North Sumatra branch.

Councillors cast 85 votes, 51 of which went to the winning pair. One vote was declared invalid. The remaining 33 votes went to Golkar faction-nominated candidates Chaeruman Harahap and Serta Ginting.

The election was held in two rounds because none of the pairs won the mandatory minimum 50 percent of the vote in the first round, said North Sumatra Council Speaker Ahmad Azhari.

Only the two pairs of candidates with the most votes were allowed to proceed to the second round. Three pairs had entered Monday's race.

The third pair was National Mandate faction-nominated Amrun Daulay and Baskami Ginting, who also hails from the PDI Perjuangan faction.

Their loss left their supporters free to choose between Rizal and his Golkar rival Chaeruman.

Baskami said that during the second round, he told PDI Per juangan members to vote for Rizal. "I've told everyone to vote for Rizal. There is no choice because I too am a PDI Perjuangan member," Baskami said.

The chairman of the council's PDI Perjuangan faction, Topan Agung Ginting, said Rizal would not have won without the support of other factions.

"We are grateful to our friends from other factions who supported our candidate," Topan said.

Losing deputy governor candidate Serta Ginting expressed no disappointment over his lost, and said the election was democrat ic. "I hope his (Rizal's) leadership will be better than during his previous governorship," said Serta, who is also the council's deputy speaker.

Rizal and Rudolf must pass a three-day scrutiny period. The election results could be annulled if the public finds fault with the process or with the pair's track record.

Monday's gubernatorial election marked one of few major victo ries for PDI Perjuangan. The party won the 1999 general election and has the most seats at the majority of legislative councils. But many candidates from PDI Perjuangan factions have lost out to others nominated by coalitions of smaller factions. There have been allegations that bribery concerning PDI Perjuangan faction members have cost the party's candidates their victories in some elections.

Last week the PDI Perjuangan nominated candidate lost the West Java gubernatorial race to Danny Setiawan. He was nominated by the Golkar and the United Development Party (PPP) factions.

PDI Perjuangan deputy secretary Mangara Siahaan said that the party had been successful in two gubernatorial elections, the first being last year's election of Jakarta Governor Sutiyoso and the second being Rizal.

"We're also targeting the governorships in Central and East Java, East Kalimantan, South Sumatra and Riau," he said.