All nine judges of the country's Constitutional Court threw out a petition by former general Wiranto alleging malpractices had cost him a crucial five million votes in first-round voting and denied him a place in a run-off poll.

The verdict means that Wiranto, who placed third in the ballot, will not replace incumbent Megawati Sukarnoputri to contest the September 20 election.

He still has a slim chance to enter the fray in September, pending a Supreme Court decision on a separate appeal on the double-punching.

Chief judge Jimly Asshiddiqie said Wiranto's lawyers had failed to substantiate claims that a mix-up over mispunched ballots and other voting irregularities cost him a place.

"The constitutional court is of the opinion that the lawyers have failed to provide the evidence on the mistakes in vote-counting which caused the plaintiff to lose 5,434,666 votes," Asshiddiqie said.

Megawati is now cleared to stand against frontrunner Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, another former general, in the final voting round.

Wiranto, of the powerful Golkar party of former dictator Suharto, won 22 percent of votes in the July poll, behind Yudhoyono's 33 percent and Megawati's nearly 27 percent.

His challenge had exacerbated political uncertainty in Indonesia, which has been preoccupied with elections for almost the entire year. Separate legislative polls were held on April 5, with Golkar topping the vote.

Wiranto's case had centred on a dispute over millions of votes declared invalid due to the "dual punching" of folded ballot papers that were subsequently reinstated.

Former US president Jimmy Carter, one of hundreds of foreign poll monitors, described the double-punching as a serious mistake, but said it did not favour any one candidate.

Monday's ruling will be welcomed by activists who insist Wiranto must answer allegations of human rights abuses during his time at the helm of Indonesia's armed forces.

He has already been investigated by a human rights team for his failure to halt bloody riots six years ago that precipitated Suharto's resignation.

United Nations-funded prosecutors in East Timor have also charged Wiranto with responsibility for army-backed atrocities against independence supporters in the then-Indonesian province in 1999. An arrest warrant has been issued.

Wiranto says he did his best to avert bloodshed in East Timor and takes credit for refusing to seize power for the military during Suharto's final days.

The former general staged a public meeting with the former Portuguese colony's president Xanana Gusmao during the election campaign in an effort to head off criticism over his past.

WAR.WIRE