Small parties’ strong showing in Indonesian poll gives them key role in presidential vote
Presidential front runner Djoko Widodo likely to have to do deal with smaller party after he falls short of the votes needed to run on his own
Indonesia's smaller parties are set to play a key role in July's presidential race after an unofficial tally showed they fared better than forecast in this week's parliamentary election.
The result complicates the campaign of front runner Djoko Widodo.
With unofficial results showing the Jakarta governor shy of the votes needed to run on his own as the main opposition party's candidate, he has signalled he's open to talks on a coalition.
I don’t think an alliance between any of the big three is on
Surveys taken before Wednesday's parliamentary vote had indicated the smaller parties would lose ground to the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle, or PDI-P, after it announced last month that Djoko, 52, was its presidential pick.
"They can be kingmakers," Paul Rowland, a political analyst in Jakarta, said of the smaller parties. "I don't think an alliance between any of the big three is on."
An unofficial tally by the Lingkaran Survei Indonesia consultancy shows the PDI-P got just under 20 per cent of the vote, giving smaller parties the chance to bargain with it or form their own coalition ahead of the election for the leader of the world's third-largest democracy.
Even if Djoko prevails, he will face a divided parliament that may hamper his efforts to implement policy changes.
Under election rules, presidential candidates must have the backing of parties or coalitions that secured 20 per cent of seats or 25 per cent of the popular vote. Djoko's party took 19.6 per cent, while the other main candidates - tycoon Aburizal Bakrie of Golkar and former general Prabowo Subianto of Gerindra - saw their parties win 14.6 per cent and 11.9 per cent.