The preliminary process for the 2018 Concurrent Local Elections has begun. One of the issue we need to focus on in regards with the election process is the election budget. The question whether election in our country is cheap or expensive to hold keeps being asked by so many people. However, there is one aspect that never been thoroughly examined …

Concurrent elections is implemented so that we can have a more effective presidential system. However, the implementation of concurrent elections in Indonesia might become a paradox if we put it in the context of Indonesian election system as specified in Law No.7/2017. It is folly to expect concurrent elections will make the presidential election more democratic within the context of …

One of the basic principle of electoral management process is efficiency. It is expected that all members and staffs of the election management body in a country will heed to this principle whenever they perform their job. Quoting Harrington Emerson, efficiency is the discrepancy between input and output (the difference between result and the resources that were used). When I …

Members of the Parliament and the government finally passed the Elections Law Bill on July 21st 2017. The decision to pass the bill was taken by majority voting because four political parties disagree with some content of the bill and decided to walk out of the plenary meeting. In general, the new Elections Law specifies the provisions regarding the election …

“A democracy without demos, that is the people who have proper understanding of the mechanism and mode of democracy, has no reason whatsoever to implement democracy. It will only lead to a bunch of kratos, that is a group of exclusive elites who exploit the idea democracy to further their interests within the bound of the constitution.” In this article, …

Having covering the discussions process of the Elections Law Bill since November, I can surely say that the contents of the Bill are not progressive enough to accommodate the interests of the people they should have prioritize. None of the articles on the Bill mentions any important point that effectively protect the interests of minority and marginalized groups, such as …

The electoral process needs to be re-formulated so that it can minimize the role of state in it. There is a prevalent misconception among policy makers in Indonesia that they think they should pass more laws in order to improve the quality of election process. As the consequence, state’s intervention in election has been more and more increased. Much like …

Financing is one of many important aspects in implementing local elections. The availability of money to funds the implementation determine the success of the local elections. Any insufficiency in funding department may delay the implementation of Indonesian local elections that will be held in 2018 and 2024. In regards with the importance of financing in local elections, it is therefore …

Early in 2016 the Asean Economic Community (AEC/MEA) has been implemented. This AEC implementation brings about Indonesian existence in Southeast Asia, especially in the political field. Although it is dynamic, this sector gives effects to other sectors. The dynamics of this sector in the long run will affect education, social and cultural sectors. Therefore, politics must be strengthened to deal …

The phenomenon that drove political parties into government coalition needs to be carefully examined; our concerns are not of big and transactional politics in the government, but on the weakening of opposition parties in parliament. Maybe this time we know Red and White Coalition (KMP) as a coalition of parties expressly declare themselves as Opposition, too naive if we only …