Indonesia election results updates: Prabowo claims presidential race win

The presidential candidate says the “movement of change” that he’s been leading has brought a new nuance into Indonesia’s election.

Anies continues by promising to remain in the movement, stressing that the fight “is not over”.

We now have the first comments by Anies Baswedan since Prabowo declared victory.

The 57-year-old academic-turned-politician says he will respect the decision of the people while also noting that vote tallying is still under way.

“We will wait until the official result, and we will respect it,” he said, calling on supporters to monitor the official count by the election commission.

A former Kopassus special forces commander, Prabowo is the only candidate with links to the hardline regime of former leader Soeharto, once his father-in-law.

He was dishonourably discharged in 1998 after Kopassus soldiers kidnapped and tortured Soeharto’s political opponents. Of 22 activists kidnapped that year, 13 remain missing. And while Prabowo never faced trial, several of his men were tried and convicted.

He has also been accused of human rights abuses in East Timor, which won independence from Indonesia amid the collapse of the Soeharto regime, and its troubled eastern region of Papua.

For all that, most Indonesian voters seemed unconcerned.

Murdoch University’s Ian Wilson told Al Jazeera that in his third presidential attempt, Prabowo changed his approach.

“Instead of posing himself as a kind of a populist outsider, with a very fiery ultranationalist rhetoric, and very open about his military background and militarist approach, he’s become the insider guy,” said Wilson, who is also a visiting fellow at the ISEAS – Yusof Ishak Institute in Singapore.

“He targeted a younger demographic by remaking his image through cartoon figures, as a cuddly uncle, casting a kind of a doubt over his human rights record, which for a younger generation is sort of an ancient history for the most part, and rather than trying to compete against the popularity of the incumbent he’s ridden on top of it,” he added, referring to Gibran being Prabowo’s running mate.

The speeches at the Istora Senayan sporting arena conclude with a communal prayer.

This is followed by dancing, a cornerstone of Prabowo’s campaign, with blue confetti raining down on the candidates.

Prabowo’s running mate begins by saying he is “very grateful” for his supporters.

“Thank you everyone for sweating, bleeding, spending their time campaigning,” Gibran said.

“A few months ago, I was no one. Now me and Prabowo are here,” the 36-year-old added.

“I want to thank Prabowo for giving a place to a young person like me … to be part of the road to a golden Indonesia,” Gibran added, describing the country’s youth as the “golden generation”.

Prabowo says other powers are envious of a country as big and rich as Indonesia and reiterates his call for unity.

“Let’s maintain peace while waiting for the official result,” he adds.

While claiming victory based on the unofficial tallies, Prabowo also says people should wait for the official results from the election commission.

He continues by expressing confidence that Indonesian democracy is working well and called for unity.

He also pledges to create a government consisting of the “best” people in the country.

The presidential candidate says that all quick counts show that his ticket has won in a single round.

He says his government will be for “all” and promises that he and his running mate will “protect and defend all the people of Indonesia, regardless of their ethnicity, race, religion or social background”.

We now have the first comments by Prabowo, who is addressing his supporters in Jakarta.

He says that he is “grateful” that the election was done peacefully, as well as for the quick count results.

It appears that Prabowo, accompanied by Gibran, has arrived at the Istora Senayan sporting arena.

They arrived by car, with Prabowo standing up through the sunroof and greeting the crowds.