Poll results surprises Bandarlampung residents

Oyos Saroso H.N., The Jakarta Post, Bandarlampung

A resident was surprised upon learning that his favorite candidate for Bandarlampung mayor, Abdul Hakim, had lost in the election runoff in the city.

"So it's true that pak Jenggot lost. It means that we can't have a native of Banten for mayor," Arifin said in thick Javanese, referring to Abdul's nickname that he uses because he has a beard.

Despite a large campaign budget and full support from first- round losers, the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) candidates Abdul Hakim and running mate Zainal Iskandar lost to duo Eddy Sutrisno and Kherlani, who were nominated by the Indonesian Democratic Party-led coalition in the runoff by a mere 3 percent.

The official result released by the local election commission on Sunday saw Eddy and Kherlani win 157,694 votes, against 148,666 for the pre-election favorites Abdul and Zainal. Even the vote counting conducted by the PKS confirmed the defeat.

Still, Arifin did not take it well, believing that with support from major parties, Abdul Hakim would eventually win against Eddy, who has gained support from the Javanese people living in the city.

For many Banten natives living in Bandarlampung, the defeat was a severe blow as great hope was placed on Abdul to repeat history. Historically, the province was under Banten's authority during the Dutch colonial rule but no Banten people have been elected as its leaders since. The elected leaders have been mostly Javanese and Lampung natives.

Unlike ordinary people who judge the outcome of the election based on ethnicity, political observers said Abdul's defeat was due to other factors.

Observer Armen Yasir from Lampung University attributed Eddy's victory to his popularity, strong support from the Javanese community as well as support from the poor.

"During his campaign, Eddy did not make promises but he came directly to the people, asking their problems and asking them to pray that he would win so he could help them," Armen said.

He also did not distribute posters or hold campaigns like other candidates.

A member of Eddy's campaign team, Yeli, said he did not have much money to hold media campaigns like Abdul Hakim.

"Eddy even received donations, from tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands, from the residents he met. He once cried when a man hugged him in Tanjungsenang subdistrict and gave him Rp 400,000," recalled Yeli.

Eddy said he preferred meeting poor residents since they were honest. He said that by meeting them, he wanted those people to know that he was one of them.

"If in the end I am elected mayor, I promise to keep on seeing the people. By meeting them I'll discover their problems," he said. "I'll become wagiling," he added, referring to someone who loves to go around.