JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — A tight and possibly ugly contest is expected in a second round election for governor of the Indonesian capital that will pit the minority Christian incumbent against a former cabinet minister backed by conservative Muslim clerics.
After months of campaigning dominated by religious and racial tensions, none of the three candidates vying to run Muslim-majority Indonesia's biggest city secured the 50 percent needed for an outright win, setting the stage for a run-off election in April.
Unofficial counts by research companies show the incumbent Gov Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama, whose campaign was hurt by blasphemy charges, won about 43 percent of Wednesday's vote.