Jokowi's Re-Election Now Official as Constitutional Court Rejects Prabowo's Challenge

Telly Nathalia
June 27, 2019 | 11:41 pm

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Chief Judge of the Constitutional Court Anwar Usman reads the verdict in the presidential election dispute on Thursday evening. (Antara Photo/Hafidz Mubarak)

Jakarta. All nine judges at the Constitutional Court on Thursday rejected Prabowo Subianto's demand to annul the result of the 2019 presidential election as announced in April by the General Elections Commission, or KPU, due to lack of evidence.

According to the KPU's final vote count, incumbent Joko "Jokowi" Widodo and his running mate Ma’ruf Amin had won the election with 55.5 percent of the vote. Prabowo's legal team had demanded that the court overturn the result and declare the former Army general and his running mate Sandiaga Uno as the real winners.

The judges rejected all 15 demands submitted by Prabowo's legal team, arguing that they had presented weak evidence, conflicting arguments and unproven allegations in the trial.

"We reject all the demands from the plaintiff," Chief Judge Anwar Usman said at the conclusion of an almost nine-hour trial on Thursday evening.

Nearly 50,000 police and military officers were deployed in Jakarta ahead of the Constitutional Court's announcement of its verdict. Around 13,000 guarded the court on Thursday.

At his residence in South Jakarta later on Thursday night, Prabowo read a statement accepting the court's decision and urging his supporters to remain calm.

"Though the verdict is very disappointing for us... we will keep respecting the 1945 Constitution and the regulations of this country," Prabowo, accompanied by Sandiaga Uno and his campaign team, said.

Prabowo said he and Sandiaga will consult their legal team to see if there is any legal step left to be taken to challenge the Constitutional Court's verdict.

Jokowi's Re-Election Now Official as Constitutional Court Rejects Prabowo's Challenge — Prabowo reads a statement accepting the Constitutional Court's verdict on Thursday night. (Antara Photo/Sigid Kurniawan)

President Jokowi meanwhile also read a statement commenting on the verdict at the Halim Perdanakusuma Air Force base in East Jakarta before departing for Osaka to attend the G20 Summit.

"The people's voice has been heard.... The Constitutional Court's decision is final," Jokowi, accompanied by vice-president Ma'ruf Amin, said.

"I urge all Indonesians to reunite and build this country together," he said.

"I believe my best friends Prabowo Subianto and Sandiaga Uno will be magnanimous [in defeat]. We all want a better Indonesia, a fair and just Indonesia," Jokowi said.