Marcos congratulates Indonesia's Prabowo for leading polls
President Marcos on Tuesday night, Feb. 20, congratulated Indonesian presidential candidate Prabowo Subianto on his "commanding lead" in the Indonesian elections.
In a post on X, Marcos said he looks forward to deepening Manila's bilateral ties with Jakarta, which he considered as "a close neighbor and partner" in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
Marcos said it was also important to bolster ties with Southeast Asia's largest economy "as we celebrate 75 years of diplomatic relations this year."
"My warmest congratulations to Defense Minister @prabowo on his commanding lead in the latest electoral count to be Indonesia's next President," Marcos said.
Likely to assume outgoing President Joko Widodo's position, Prabowo is leading in the latest electoral count in the Indonesian elections against rivals Anies Baswedan and Ganjar Pranowo.
Indonesians began on Feb. 14 voting for their next leader, with Subianto, a military chief during the Suharto dictatorship, being expected to become the frontrunner.