Nani Afrida and Ridwan Max Sijabat, Banda Aceh – As the ballot counting continues from last week's elections in Aceh, it is clear voters favored independent candidates with ties to the Free Aceh Movement (GAM), giving them a mandate to introduce needed changes to the province.

Many eligible voters said they no longer had confidence in Jakarta, which they accused of decades of unfulfilled promises.

Bahctiar, a 55-year-old resident of Aceh Besar and a food-stall owner in Lampriet subdistrict, said he and his family voted for Irwandi Yusuf and his running mate Muhammad Nazar in the gubernatorial election.

He said they had confidence in the former GAM members, particularly given the group's success in lobbying the international community and bringing peace to Aceh.

"Irwandi and his running mate Muhammad Nazar were officially independent candidates, but we know they were nominated by GAM. Voters still remember how Jakarta treated GAM and the Acehnese before the peace agreement was signed," he told The Jakarta Post.

Irwandi and Nazar have a commanding lead in the gubernatorial election, polling especially well in eastern areas of Aceh, which were GAM strongholds during the decades of armed conflict.

As of Tuesday, the pair had received 33.5 percent of the 1.2 million votes which have reached the Independent Elections Committee (KIP). There were about 2.6 million registered voters for the elections.

GAM candidates also have claimed victory in a large number of elections in regencies and municipalities for local leaders.

Activist Raihan Diani called on Jakarta and all political parties to accept the results of the elections. She also advised Jakarta to learn from the defeat of government-backed candidates, and avoid administrative mismanagement, political engineering and bloody conflicts in the future.

"Eligible voters cast their ballots for GAM leaders to express their confidence in GAM and simultaneously to punish those political parties that did nothing when they needed help in the past. They were victims and witnesses of the military's past abuses, and they know all the parties gave empty promises during campaigning and will leave now that the elections are over," she said.

Observers also believe the government's slow handling of reconstruction efforts in the province following the 2004 earthquake and tsunami played a role in the good showing of GAM candidates.

Maimun, 48, who has been working as a vegetable vendor in Lambaro Skep subdistrict since his house and fishing boat were destroyed in the tsunami, said the victims were tired of the empty promises given by political parties.

"With the new leaders from GAM, the Acehnese people want to see change.... The local elections are our chance to determine our future," he said.

He said most tsunami victims were disappointed with the slow pace of reconstruction work, with many people still living in temporary shelters almost two years after the disaster.

He said he was optimistic the new leaders would give more attention to disaster victims and be more serious about improving the lives of residents. When asked what would happen if the new government turned out to be corrupt and ineffective, he said people would vote them out in the next elections.

Muhammad Yusuf, 42, who lost his house in Baitussalam subdistrict and many relatives in the tsunami, said he voted for Irwandi because the former GAM leader had expressed his strong commitment to improving the lives of the Acehnese during the campaign.

"Irwandi is an influential GAM leader and was nominated by GAM, while Nazar is the chairman of SIRA, which in the past fought for a self-determination referendum for Aceh. We are sure they know what the Acehnese want from them," he said. SIRA is the Aceh Referendum Information Center.

Rusdy, 34, a resident of Keude Pidie in Pidie regency, which was a GAM stronghold during the struggle, said most voters trusted GAM leaders to ensure a permanent peace in the province.

"Many people suffered during the armed conflict and are living in poverty even though the province is rich in natural resources such as oil and gas. The people have gained nothing from the mining sector," he said.

Syaifuddin Bantasyam, a political analyst at Syiah Kuala University in Band Aceh, said he predicted Irwandi's victory in the gubernatorial election because GAM's political machine remained operational at the grassroots level, while national political parties only had networks that reached the subdistricts.

"Political parties are less popular in rural areas, while most eligible voters live in villages and remote areas which are GAM's strongholds," he said.

He said that in the end, the results of the elections demonstrated the Acehnese were politically knowledgeable enough to know which leaders were more likely to bring about change to the province.