Former general tops first round of Indonesia vote

Former general Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono topped round one of Indonesia's first direct presidential election and faces incumbent Megawati Sukarnoputri in a September 20 run-off, election officials said yesterday.

The election commission announced the results of the July 5 poll hours after a blast at its Jakarta headquarters briefly halted final counting.

Nobody was injured in the blast, caused by low-powered explosives. Police said they were investigating and would boost security for the run-off.

Mr Yudhoyono, an outsider who rose to hot favourite after resigning as chief security minister from Ms Megawati's cabinet during a row earlier this year, won 33.6 per cent of the first round vote, the election commission said yesterday.

Ms Megawati, who has led the world's most populous Muslim nation for the past three years, came second with 26.6 per cent in a race between five candidates, better than opinion polls had forecast.

"We ask all people to fight along with us, especially our brothers who want change but in the first round had not joined us," Mr Yudhoyono said in a speech delivered at a five-star hotel in Jakarta after the results.

The election is being closely watched by allies such as the United States and by the investment community, both worried over security in Indonesia after deadly bombings on Bali island in 2002 and at a luxury Jakarta hotel last year.

Islamic militants with ties to an al Qaeda-linked group were blamed for those attacks. Ms Megawati and Mr Yudhoyono have talked tough on terror, but Ms Megawati has been criticised as weak in practice, and some expect a firmer approach from Mr Yudhoyono.

The blast at the election commission building marred an otherwise peaceful election, but only briefly rattled investors on the Jakarta stock exchange, which closed almost flat.

With no candidate gaining more than 50 per cent of the vote, a run-off between the top two is required. Former armed-forces chief Wiranto came third with 22.15 per cent and has threatened earlier to challenge the count, citing irregularities.

With the gap closing and eight weeks remaining until the run-off, political analysts predict a bruising battle as Ms Megawati, the daughter of Indonesia's founding president Sukarno, fights for another term and her political life.

"The second round will be a very tough fight because it will be one-on-one," said political commentator Dewi Fortuna Anwar.

"While (Mr) Yudhoyono has an advantage in terms of personal popularity, in terms of political machinery he is at a disadvantage."