A Closer Look at the 2014 Presidential Election

Abstrak

As July 9 is fast approaching, Indonesia is preparing itself for a major test for its young democracy. Over 185 million voters 1 will their democratic rights at almost 545,000 voting centres spread across the archipelago to elect a new leader to lead the world's 10th largest economy. The new leader will replace the incumbent president, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (SBY). Two presidential candidates, Prabowo Subianto and Joko "Jokowi" Widodo, will contest to obtain a majority vote of more than 50% nationwide and at least 20% of votes spread in over half of the total provinces in Indonesia to be elected as the new President as governed under Art. 159 in Law No. 42 of 2008. Looking at the second quarter of 2014, this review of political developments attempts to provide a quick overview of the election mechanism in Indonesia and map out the policy directions of the two power contenders, in order to portray the current political atmosphere towards the presidential election.