Presidential candidate Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono shows his vote, along with his wife Kristiani Herawati, before casting their ballots at a polling station in Cibubur, Indonesia on Wednesday. -- PHOTO: AP
JAKARTA - PRESIDENT Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono had a massive lead in Indonesia's elections as voting booths closed around the country, according to an exit poll broadcast on national television.
Reforms to quicken if SBY reelected
ANALYSTS expect that in a second term Mr Yudhoyono would quicken the pace and widen the scope of reforms in Southeast Asia's biggest economy to attract badly needed foreign investment, create jobs and shore up flagging economic growth.
The streets of central Jakarta, normally choked with traffic, were quiet with a few police standing watchfully at key intersections and close to polling stations.
A CONTROVERSY over voter lists marred the run-up to the election with the teams of Mr Yudhoyono's two rivals complaining about millions of duplicate names and even the names of dead people and children on the electoral rolls.
Their barrage of complaints may have fanned public doubt about the credibility of the process, and could make it easier for the losers to challenge the result.
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A DECADE ago, Indonesia was the sick man of Asia. After 32 years of rule by Suharto, who oversaw a system of entrenched corruption and nepotism, it stood on the brink of political, social and financial collapse.
Mr Yudhoyono's government has since brought political stability, peace and the best economic performance in a decade.
The count by MetroTV gave the liberal ex-general 50.48 per cent of the vote, compared to 19.48 per cent for opposition leader Megawati Sukarnoputri and 15.19 per cent for outgoing Vice President Jusuf Kalla.
Another 'quick count' poll broadcast by TV One gave Mr Yudhoyono 53.87 per cent of the vote, with Mrs Megawati third on 20.74 and Kalla on 25.79.
Final official results are not expected for several days but based on the unofficial figures Mr Yudhoyono will be hoping to avoid a second-round run-off in September.
Some 170 million people were eligible to vote in only the country's second direct presidential election since the fall of the Suharto dictatorship in 1998.
Metro TV did not say how many people were surveyed in the exit poll. The election commission said it had asked broadcasters to hold back from announcing further exit poll results until all voting had been completed across the country.
The election will determine the pace of reform over the next five years and cement the country's transition to democracy.
'Today is the people's day,' Mr Yudhoyono told reporters after casting his vote in the town of Bogor, on Java island.
Polling stations opened first in the remote eastern region of Papua, where extra police and special forces were on standby after recent violence linked to separatists, but there were no reports of unrest during the short, five-hour voting window.
Other polling stations followed as the sun rose across the rest of the country, though there was little sense of excitement after weeks of opinion polls showing that Mr Yudhoyono was almost certain to be re-elected. -- AFP, REUTERS
