(Adds second poll group putting former rebel ahead) By Achmad Sukarsono BANDA ACEH, Indonesia, Dec 11 (Reuters) - Voting in the Indonesian province of Aceh ended on Monday with two poll groups putting a former rebel leader ahead in an election meant to shore up a peace deal between the government and separatists. About 2.6 million people are expected to have cast their ballots in the first direct election for a governor and top posts in Aceh, devastated by the Indian Ocean tsunami two years ago and battered for decades before that by a civil war. Eight candidates are running for governor, including two retired Indonesian army generals and former Free Aceh Movement (GAM) commander Irwandi Yusuf, who had a narrow escape when the tsunami swamped the prison where he was jailed. "I have voted for the person who I think is most suitable to lead Aceh. I hope he can bring Aceh to a brighter future which is safe, peaceful, prosperous and free from corruption," said businessman Zulfan in the provincial capital, Banda Aceh. A leading poll group, the Indonesian Survey Circle, said that according to its samples Yusuf had 39.27 percent of the vote, ahead of his nearest rival on 16.17 percent. A second poll group, Jurdil Aceh, the local parter of the Washington-based National Democratic Institute for International Affairs, put Yusuf at 38.57 percent. Asked if he felt he had won, Yusuf, who negotiated for GAM in talks with Jakarta, said: "Not yet because the election commission has not officially announced it ... but this is the dream of the Acehnese people being fulfilled and they want fundamental change in all aspects of life and governance." More of an academic than a gun-toting rebel, he was arrested in Jakarta in 2003 and sentenced to nine years in prison for his work as an underground campaigner and spokesman for GAM. The province's election commission will only announce the results in early January. The election comes after Jakarta and GAM signed the Aug. 15, 2005, truce under Finnish mediation to end almost three decades of fighting that had killed 15,000 people since the rebels launched a struggle for an independent state on the northern tip of Indonesia's Sumatra island. The Helsinki pact came after months of negotiations, partially spurred by the Dec. 26, 2004, Indian Ocean tsunami that left around 170,000 Acehnese dead or missing. Previously, the governor was appointed by a local assembly packed with pro-Jakarta members. LARGELY PEACEFUL POLLS Voters made their choices by stabbing a nail into the ballot paper, with pictures and names of the candidates, and then had their fingers dipped in dark indelible ink. Turnout in areas of the province seen by Reuters was strong and Indonesian Survey Circle put voter turnout at 78.96 percent. Glyn Ford, chief of the European Union election monitoring team, said the poll appeared to have gone smoothly. "There have been stories about vote-buying, vote fraud. No one has made specific complaints that identify dawn raids," he told Reuters, referring to an Indonesian term under which political operatives buy votes at dawn before polls open. President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono told reporters: "With God's blessing, Aceh can build better future under Indonesia's unitary state." The campaign in the province of four million people was largely peaceful, but 13,000 police officers were on guard during voting and counting at more than 8,400 polling stations. Aceh police chief Bachrumsyah Kasman said a blast from a home-made bomb occurred in a North Aceh village hours before polling stations opened on Monday and a man also tried to threaten voters with a grenade in the east of the province. Many analysts said the race for governor would be tight. If needed, a run-off between the top two candidates will be held within 60 days after the official announcement. (Additional reporting by Ahmad Pathoni and Muklis Ali in Jakarta)
