Preparing for the Great 2024 election

KOMPAS/WAWAN H PRABOWO

Residents cross the General Election Commission mural which invites the role of the community not to abstain and fight money politics in the elections in the Dukuh Atas area, Jakarta, on Monday (13/7/2020).

The nation’s greatest democratic event will occur in 2024. Presidential, legislative, senatorial, local legislative and 547 regional head elections will be held simultaneously.

The nation’s largest simultaneous election will now cer-tainly be held, after the government and the House of Representatives agreed to remove a revision to Law No. 7/2017 on elections from the 2021 National Legislation Program (Prolegnas). Because of this decision, the 2019 simultaneous presidential, legislative, senatorial and lo-cal legislative elections will be repeated in 2024. Gubernatorial election for 34 provinces, as well as regental and mayoral elections for 514 regencies and cities will also be held in 2024 as stipulated in Law No. 6/2020.

Also read: 270 Regions to be Led by Acting Officials

The General Elections Commission (KPU) has sug-gested that the government move the election date for-ward for the 2024 simultaneous elections from April to Feb. 14 or March 6 so that the elections to choose re-gional heads at provincial, regental and mayoral levels can be done by November 13. The rescheduling is also needed to ensure that all participants can file election lawsuits with the Constitutional Court without worrying over a tight elections schedule.

The President, the Home Ministry, and governors have strategic roles.

Besides the technicalities of holding the elections, the government needs to ensure that it has enough officials to fill the vacancies for 24 governors and 248 regents and mayors, as their terms will end in 2022 or 2023. The President, the Home Ministry, and governors have strategic roles. The law on regional elections stipulates that governors have the same rank as Echelon I officials in the central government, while regents and mayors have the same rank as Echelon II officials.

KOMPAS/JUMARTO YULIANUS

A crowd of supporters bearing campaign flags surround the South Kalimantan governor and deputy governor candidates, Denny Indrayana and Difriadi Darjat (center, wearing garlands), as the group heads en masse for the pair to register at the South Kalimantan General Elections Commission (KPU) on Saturday (5/9/2020) in Banjarmasin. Using the moniker “H2D” for Haji Denny-Difriadi, the candidates have the backing of three political parties in the 2020 regional elections

In selecting officials for acting governor, the home min-ister should nominate three officials to the President. Then, the President should select one name. Official nomination for acting regent or mayor is done by the relevant governor to the home minister. Then, the home minister will select one of the nominees. The President, home minister and governor must ensure that the selected officials have good track records, are competent and face no conflicts of interest.

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The purpose of this experiment is to improve time and budget efficiency, as well as reduce social, political and economic costs.

Combining the simultaneous election with regional head elections will be the climax of the democratic experiment in place since 2015. The purpose of this experiment is to improve time and budget efficiency, as well as reduce social, political and economic costs. The proponents of this experiment also believe that holding executive and legislative elections in one go will make the presidential system more effective. A unified government can be achieved, while a divided government can be avoided.

KOMPAS/RUNIK SRI ASTUTI

The Sidoarjo KPU held a plenary meeting to determine the elected district head and deputy regent candidates for the 2020 regional elections, Friday (22/1/2021) at Fave Hotel.

We hope that this decision will provide legal and political certainty to the KPU in preparing for the 2024 election. Political parties need to prepare their best cadres. People should also use their voting rights well. More importantly, we can achieve the ultimate purpose of an election: primus inter pares, or selecting the first among equals.

(This article was translated by Lionel Priyadi)