This year’s simultaneous regional elections, or Pilkada, have officially been postponed to December, after President Joko Widodo signed a Perppu (government regulation in lieu of law) on Monday ordering the deferment.
As stipulated in the Perppu, all ongoing preparations for the elections of governors, regents and mayors are to be postponed due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, which was previously declared as a non-natural disaster in Indonesia.
Initially scheduled for Sept. 23, Pilkada has now been postponed to December, with the possibility that it might be rescheduled again depending on the COVID-19 situation in the country, as determined by relevant authorities.
The new election date will be determined later by the General Elections Commission (KPU), the government, and the House of Representatives (DPR).
This year’s Pilkada is set to be the largest ever regional-level simultaneous elections in the country’s history, as it will simultaneously involve 270 regions across Indonesia.
Experts have cast doubt that this year’s Pilkada would be successfully held by the end of this year. However, executive director of the general elections and democracy association (Perludem) Titi Anggraini said that steps leading up to the new Pilkada day, with a date in December in mind, should at least begin on June 9.
Ujang Komaruddin, the executive director of Indonesia Political Review (IPR) said Pilkada should be postponed to next year or even 2022, to allow for an interlude from the COVID-19 pandemic and its countermeasures as part of an effort to decrease the possibility of politicians riding off the issue to boost their electability.
