Indonesian election ends, Jokowi’s line may continue

Quick vote count shows current Defense Minister Prabowo wins presidential election

　　Indonesian election ends, Jokowi’s line may continue

　　Quick counting results from multiple polling agencies show that in the Indonesian presidential election held on the 14th, the 72-year-old current Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto won the election and will succeed the current President Joko Widodo. .

　　Analysts believe that Prabowo's victory means that Indonesia, the largest country in Southeast Asia, will continue Jokowi's path and move towards realizing the vision of "Golden Indonesia in 2045".

Joining forces with the Joko family to add chips to Prabowo's victory

　　Since Joko was elected president in 2014, Indonesia, as the leader of ASEAN, has experienced steady economic growth and its status in Southeast Asia and global politics has also been enhanced. This election is considered a review of Joko's political legacy. Prabowo held high the banner of Jokowi's successor and ran as a partner with Jokowi's eldest son Jibrand. Preliminary vote counting results show that the combination of Prabowo and Gibran received 58.25% of the vote and was directly elected without the need for a second round of voting. The Jakarta Post commented that this shows that the "Jokowi" (Jokowi's nickname) effect has had a significant impact on this Indonesian election.

　　Prabowo will officially take office as President of Indonesia in October this year. His father, Sumitro, was a famous Indonesian economist and served as a minister in the Sukarno and Suharto governments. In 1970, Prabowo entered the Indonesian Military Academy and joined the army after graduating in 1974, becoming the commander of the Indonesian National Army's Army Special Forces and Strategic Reserve Force. After serious riots in May 1998, Suharto was forced to step down, and Prabowo was forced to retire from the army and went into exile in Jordan.

　　After that, Prabowo turned to the business world, and his business interests spanned energy, fishery, timber, palm oil, mining and other fields. By 2014, his personal assets had reached US$148 million. In 2014 and 2019, Prabowo twice faced Jokowi in the presidential election, but failed both times. In October 2019, Prabowo changed his tune and accepted Joko's appointment as the government's defense minister. In August 2022, Prabowo accepted the nomination of the "Greater Indonesia Movement Party" led by him to compete for the presidential position.

　　Analysts believe that in order to win the election, Prabowo took a series of actions, the most important of which was to win over the Joko family and attract young voters. In October last year, Prabowo nominated Gibran as vice president. In order to attract the support of tens of millions of young voters, Prabowo frequently appeared on social media and online short videos, successfully transforming his image from a "strong man in the military" to a "lovable grandpa". His cartoon image is in line with young people. The dancing scenes and even his beloved cat have attracted "numerous fans" for him.

Will continue Jokowi’s vision of “Golden Indonesia 2045”

　　The U.S. government’s attitude toward Indonesia’s current election is intriguing. Kirby, the strategic communications coordinator of the White House National Security Council, said on the 15th that the United States "respects the vote and voice of the Indonesian people" and will congratulate Prabowo in due course, but at the same time emphasized that "human rights are the basis of the Biden administration's foreign policy," which reflects It shows the ambivalence of the United States towards Prabowo's election.

　　On the one hand, Indonesia, with a population of 270 million and steady economic growth in recent years, is not only the largest economy in Southeast Asia and an important spokesperson for the "Global South" in the United States. It is also an important partner of Washington in the fields of key minerals and supply chain cooperation such as nickel ore, promoting cooperation with Relations with Indonesia are an important part of the Biden administration’s Indo-Pacific strategy.

　　But on the other hand, Washington, from the standpoint of "values ​​diplomacy," has to show its "concern" about Prabowo's background. After all, it was not until 2020 that the Trump administration lifted the entry ban on Prabowo, then Defense Minister. According to the United States, Prabowo served as an important commander in the military when his father-in-law Suharto was the president of Indonesia, and his iron-fist methods were suspected of "violating human rights." Connelly, a researcher at the American think tank Institute for International Strategic Studies, believes that if the official vote count before March 20 shows that Prabowo was elected president of Indonesia, the United States will cancel the vote against Prabowo just like it did with Indian Prime Minister Modi after the 2014 election. We will continue to advance U.S.-Indonesia relations despite all restrictions imposed by Wo.

　　Experts believe that Prabowo will inherit the main domestic and foreign policies of President Joko Widodo over the past decade, including attracting foreign investment to develop the economy, promoting the "ASEAN-centric theory", and avoiding taking sides among major powers. Julian Toro, a professor at Gajah Mada University in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, believes that Prabowo will use Indonesia's non-aligned stance to develop economic and trade relations with China and the United States. Local experts pointed out that the new Indonesian government will continue to promote extensive cooperation with China under the framework of the joint construction of the "Belt and Road" initiative, including China's investment in Indonesian infrastructure construction and electric vehicles.

　　During Joko's tenure as president, Indonesia's economy grew by 45% and infrastructure construction developed significantly, which kept his support rate at around 80% when he was about to leave office. In August last year, Joko proposed three major strategies for the "Golden Indonesia 2045" vision, namely, concentration of human resources, development of rural, border and island areas, and structural reform. People expect Prabowo to inherit Jokowi's ideas and lead the country to realize this vision. (Liberation Daily)