(Bloomberg) -- Two Indonesian presidential candidates are disputing the election body’s declaration that Prabowo Subianto won last month’s presidential vote, alleging fraud in the process.  

Former Jakarta Governor Anies Baswedan’s legal team filed a lawsuit before the Constitutional Court on Thursday, claiming they have proof of irregularities in the conduct of the Feb. 14 polls. The other contender, former Central Java Governor Ganjar Pranowo, told reporters in a separate briefing that his team will submit a similar suit as early as Friday.

“We want the practice of democracy to be better, and hopefully the process at the court will be a lesson for all of us,” said Anies, as he is commonly known. 

Representatives for Prabowo didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.

The lawsuits, which had been widely expected, are unlikely to overturn the election result with Prabowo’s convincing victory garnering nearly 60% votes, according to Dedi Dinarto, a political analyst at public adviser firm Global Counsel.

“The allegations are not strong enough to change the outcome of the election,” Dinarto said, adding that past legal challenges against previous elections have all failed to win court support. 

The Constitutional Court must make a decision on the electoral dispute within 14 days from receiving the lawsuit, according to the rules. The country’s election supervisory body known as Bawaslu hasn’t found any indications of fraud, its head Rahmat Bagja told Bloomberg in a text message, citing the lack of evidence.

Ballot Tampering

Prabowo’s presidential run has been marred by controversy surrounding current leader Joko Widodo’s perceived bid to retain influence through his son Gibran Rakabuming Raka becoming Prabowo’s running mate. Anies, who positioned himself as the opposition candidate, and Ganjar, backed by the ruling Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle or PDI-P, have accused the government of interfering in the campaign, including through social assistance handouts. Jokowi’s administration has denied the allegation.

Election watchdogs have also raised concerns over reports of ballot tampering, while civil society groups said this year’s election was the least free and fair since the fall of the Suharto dictatorship in 1998.

The courts are not the only way to seek remedy from election irregularities. PDI-P and two groups supporting Anies have sought a right of inquiry in a parliamentary plenary meeting earlier this month. Even if the inquiry may not affect the election results, it could pose a distraction to the political leadership. It may even be used as a staging point to call for an impeachment.

“What we are doing with the constitutional court is not looking to win the election, but beyond that, it is to preserve a healthy democracy for the future,” said Mahfud MD, Ganjar’s running mate in the election. 

(Updated to add analyst comments in fifth paragraph.)

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