Independent political candidates as well as voter turnout rose in the run-up to the 2017 simultaneous local government direct elections compared to 2015, the home affairs minister said on Saturday (14/10).
To fund those elections, Rp 5.8 trillion ($544 million) was taken from seven provincial, 76 regency and 18 city budgets, Home Affairs Minister Tjahjo Kumolo said.
The elections showed a turnout of 44.4 million voters to vote for 310 paired candidates, Tjahjo said, adding that nine couples were independent candidates. In 2015, the percentage of voters was 65-75 percent of the country’s population of voter-eligible citizens.
“From three [independent] candidates in 2015, we had nine [independent] candidates in 2017,” the minister said.
Tjahjo said the elections went smoothly, but the nature of “ready to lose and ready to win” has not yet been developed in the country.
Indonesia will conduct another simultaneous election in 171 provinces, cities and regencies next year.
