Christian governor loses to Muslim rival in Jakarta
Blasphemy trial may cost Basuki Purnama his job
JAKARTA // The Christian governor of the Indonesian capital has lost heavily to a Muslim former government minister in an election run-off. Anies Baswedan, who was accused of pandering to hardliners to win votes, and his supporters won by more than 10 percentage points against Basuki Tjahaja Purnama, who was fighting for his job while standing trial for blasphemy.
Official results are not expected until next month but the private pollsters, who count a sample of votes, are usually accurate.
The vote was seen as a test of whether the moderate Islam traditionally practised in the world’s most populous Muslim country was under threat from hardliners, who have accused Mr Purnama of insulting the Quran.
Mr Baswedan, 47, a former education minister, hinted that he would heal the divisions in the capital after the bitter poll if his victory was confirmed.
Mr Purnama, the city’s first non-Muslim governor for half a century and the first ethnic Chinese leader of Jakarta, congratulated Mr Baswedan and his running mate.
The defeat was also a blow for president Joko Widodo, whose party backed Mr Purnama. The incumbent was poised to win re-election after gaining popularity thanks to his efforts in cleaning up Jakarta.
But the governor – known by his nickname, Ahok – lost his unassailable lead after a controversy erupted last year over claims that he had insulted Islam.
His troubles began in September, when he lightheartedly said his rivals were tricking people into voting against him by using a Quranic verse that some interpret to mean that Muslims voters should choose only Muslim leaders. The allegations drew hundreds of thousands of conservative Muslims on to the streets of Jakarta in protest and led to Mr Purnama being put on trial for blasphemy in a case critics viewed as politically motivated. Mr Purnama won in the election’s first round in February but Mr Baswedan was seen as the favourite in the run-off because the votes from another Muslim candidate, who was knocked out, were expected to go to him.
More than 7.2 million people were registered to vote in the polls, which are also important since politicians view them as a potential stepping stone to the presidency in 2019.