Major rallies held in Indonesia as election campaign draws to close
The Hindu
Tens of thousands of supporters gather for final rallies in Jakarta and Solo ahead of Indonesia's presidential election.
Tens of thousands of supporters of Indonesia's presidential contenders packed final rallies in the capital Jakarta and the Central Java city of Solo on Saturday, as campaigning draws to a close ahead of the world's biggest single-day election.
Candidates will enter a cooling off period from Sunday to election day on Wednesday, where three contestants are running to succeed the hugely popular President Joko Widodo, who has led Indonesia for a decade and cannot run again.
The contenders to lead the world's third-largest democracy are popular former Governors Ganjar Pranowo and Anies Baswedan, and ex-special forces commander Prabowo Subianto, who has soared in opinion polls with the tacit backing of the president, and with the incumbent's son as his running mate.
At stake is the leadership for the next five years of a mineral-rich Group of 20 economy of 270 million people positioning itself as a future destination for multinational firms in the electric vehicle supply chain.
More than 20,000 legislative and administrative posts will also be contested by 259,000 candidates.
Supporters at Anies' last rally in the capital filled a 82,000-capacity stadium, chanting Islamic prayers. Some stayed overnight to secure a spot to see the former Jakarta governor.
"I arrived here yesterday on purpose because if I had come today, I'm afraid I couldn't have gotten inside," said Ida Zubaedah, 50. "I need to be inside because I want to see Anies."
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