Voting begins in Indonesia to elect new President, other leaders
Voting started in Indonesia on Wednesday with more than 200 million voters casting their ballots to elect a new president amid concerns regarding the cost of living and human rights, CNN reported.
Indonesia aims to enter a new phase in politics after President Joko Widodo has completed his maximum term as president.
The people of Indonesia will elect not only a new president and vice president but also parliamentary and local representatives in the world's largest single-day election, reported Al Jazeera.
More than 204 million of Indonesia's 270 million people are registered to vote, and while voting is not compulsory, election day is a public holiday so turnout is generally high. The voter turnout during the last election in 2019 was 81 per cent, according to Indonesia's General Election Commission.
There are 18 national political parties across Indonesia, with 575 parliamentary seats up for grabs. The incumbent Indonesian president, Joko Widodo, popularly known as 'Jokowi', has completed the maximum two terms in office, so this year's election will mark the first change in leadership in 10 years.
Even Sembiring, the director of the Indonesian Forum for Environment in Riau (WALHI Riau) described the election as an «opportunity for healing» for Indonesian voters and «an important moment of potential to restore Indonesia for the next five years». Three presidential and vice presidential pairings are vying for the top jobs including a former military
