Vote tally goes at snail's pace

Vote tally goes at snail's pace

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

As of 11:30 p.m. on Monday, with only about 130,000 votes counted
nationwide, mostly from Jakarta and East Java, the current
president's party was leading the last president's party by a
slim margin, with an upstart newcomer making a huge splash after
voting ended 1 p.m.

Ballot counting began at a snail's pace, in stark contrast to
what the nation had been promised, and the election officials
have over 140 million to go. Due to the minuscule percentage
counted, the numbers are likely to change markedly, but they do
perhaps show a very surprising trend with the former security
minister's party.

Of the votes counted, the secular nationalist party of
President Megawati Soekarnoputri had Indonesian Democratic Party
of Struggle (PDI-P) had 18.41 percent, followed by the Muslim-
based National Awakening Party (PKB) with 16.26 percent,
according to the General Elections Commission (KPU)'s ballot
counting center.

Despite the sluggish counting, the election was generally
smooth across the archipelago.

The early returns also had surprising newcomer, the Democratic
Party ahead of the once-mighty Golkar, Soeharto's electoral
machine, which survived the 1998 political upheaval that saw the
autocrat fall from grace.

The Democratic Party, co-founded by the former security
minister Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (fired last month by Megawati),
was close third with 13.44 percent, ahead of Golkar's 13.33
percent.

The fifth, sixth and seventh positions in the early count put
the Islamic-based Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) at 10.56
percent; the veterans from the Muslim-based United Development
Party (PPP) at 6.87 percent and Amien Rais's National Mandate
Party (PAN), at 5.56 percent.

In results from Jakarta late on Monday, still with under 1
percent of all votes counted, PDI-P was getting annihilated by
Susilo's Democratic Party and the PKS. As the counting continues
for the next few days, the positions could change.

KPU earlier claimed the majority of the counting from major
cities would be known by 8 p.m. on Monday.

KPU member Chusnul Mar'iyah attributed the late counting on
difficulties encountered by data entry personnel and the fact
that not all districts had internet facilities.

Although the polls ran well for the most part, several areas,
most notably in Papua province, had to be postponed due to a lack
of ballot papers, boxes and other essentials.

The election will determine who will sit in the House of
Representatives, the Provincial and Regental/Municipal Councils
and the Regional Representatives Council (DPD) -- a new national
body similar to the U.S. Senate.

For the first time, the House will not be represented by
active members of the Indonesian Military (TNI), which was given
free seats in past elections. By law, military members are
allowed to cast votes starting this year but TNI Commander Gen.
Endriartono Sutarto had made an appeal to his men and women to
refrain from voting.

In Bali, voters cast their votes in over 9,000 voting stations
in nine electoral regions.

Bali police spokeswoman Snr. Comm. Rosalia P Gaut said that no
security-related incidents occurred.

"Everything went smoothly and as expected," she said on Monday
evening.

The Democratic Party also gained strong ground in Denpasar,
placing second the president's party in several tight head-to-
head battles in PDI-P's heartland.

In several polling stations in Ampenan, on Lombok island in
West Nusa Tenggara, several people said they had been paid Rp
20,000 (US$2.3) each to vote for "certain political parties".

At present, PDI-P, Golkar, PKS and the Democratic Party were
the early leaders in the province.

Meanwhile, in Manado, North Sulawesi, several parties,
including Golkar, PDI-P, the startling Christian-based newcomer
Prosperous Peaceful Party (PDS) -- also eighth overall nationwide
-- and the Democratic Party were involved in a race too close to
call.

The Democratic Party and PKS reportedly secured significant
votes in Palembang, South Sumatra, the hometown of Megawati's
husband Taufik Kiemas.

In Samarinda, East Kalimantan, the only three parties allowed
for the three decades under Soeharto: PDI-P, Golkar and PPP, had
taken the early lead.