While pollsters are still busy counting the results of Jakarta’s gubernatorial election, candidate pair Alex Noerdin and Nono Sampono has given up on their chance of proceeding to the second round and have waved goodbye to members of their campaign team.
Based on an ongoing quick count by Kompas daily, the pair only secured 4.74 percent of votes, the second-lowest after independent candidate Hendardji Supandji and his running mate Ahmad Riza, who garnered 1.88 percent.
The Alex-Nono pair, which was backed by the Golkar Party and the United Development Party (PPP), was listed below another independent candidate, Faisal Basri, and his running mate Biem Benjamin, who gathered 5.07 percent of votes.
The pair held a simple but emotional farewell at Nono’s home in South Jakarta.
“I have never been defeated [by other candidates] before. It is a bitter pill to swallow, but this is a lesson from God,” Alex said on Wednesday.
Alex had previously said that “defeating an incumbent” was his specialty. Alex had won three regional elections before running for the top post in the capital.
Alex-Nono became the only pair who promised to fix Jakarta’s complex problems with traffic congestions and floods within three years.
A teary-eyed Alex said that the team should not look for excuses or someone to blame. “We failed; it doesn’t matter what the reasons were,” he said.
Despite the unexpected result, Alex, the South Sumatra governor, said he thanked his campaign team members for their support and votes. “Now I will return to South Sumatra,” he said.
Nono Sampono, a retired general, apologized to his family. “Over the past one year, I have been so busy out there, preparing for the election. My apology goes to my wife and children,” he said.
The emotional speeches ended up with hugs among members of the pair’s campaign team and supporters.
Up until Wednesday afternoon, the Kompas quick count still put candidate pair Joko “Jokowi” Widodo and Basuki “Ahok” Tjahaja Purnama in first place, with more than 40 percent of the votes. Incumbent pair Fauzi Bowo and Nachrowi Ramli were in second place with 34.36 percent, followed by Hidayat Nur Wahid and Didik J Rachbini with 11.7 percent.
The Jakarta General Elections Commission (KPU Jakarta) is expected to announce the final official results next week. (sat/lfr)
