Indonesian President Megawati Sukarnoputri is clinging to a narrow lead with about a quarter of the ballots counted.
She today asked Indonesians to be patient during the tally of votes from a parliamentary election three days ago.
"I ask you to be calm and patient in waiting for the result," Ms Megawati said in a brief statement at the presidential palace. "Let it flow, because it's the people's will that counts."
Counting has gone slowly as returns trickle in from the vast archipelago, despite optimistic forecasts before the vote that the count would be relatively swift.
The latest numbers showed Ms Megawati's party ahead, although the 37 million votes counted by midday comprise just 25 per cent of the 147 million people eligible to vote in the world's fourth-most populous country.