Joko Widodo named new Indonesian president

JAKARTA, July 22 (UPI) -- Joko Widodo was named winner of the Indonesian presidential election Tuesday, although his opposition denounced the race as a fraud.

Joko, 53, received 53.15 percent of the votes in Indonesia's first presidential election in 10 years. He was a former slum dweller and carpenter before he was elected mayor of his hometown of Surakarta and later governor of Jakarta. His opponent, retired army general Prabowo Subianto, received 46.85 percent of the votes, the General elections Committee declared.

Joko, elected on a populist platform, is the first Indonesian president not from the country's political or military elite. He has pledged a "people-centric" government. Indonesia, the fourth most populous country on earth and a G-20 member, has a large percentage of its citizens still living in poverty.

Prabowo, 62, referred to the vote-counting as "a massive, structured and systematic fraud," and withdrew from the race after it became clear Joko was the winner, saying he would reject the results. Elections officials quickly rejected the campaign's objections.