190 Million Indonesians Vote in Elections
On 17 April Indonesia underwent a uniquely complex democratic process, when around 190 million citizens cast their votes in national elections at both presidential and legislative levels of government. The presidential election was a repeat of the 2014 race for the presidency. The incumbent, Joko Widodo (known as Jokowi), was standing against a former army general Prabowo Subianto. Each was supported by a coalition of political parties represented in the national parliament. Jokowi’s support came from both nationalist and moderate Muslim parties, the largest party being the multi-religious Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) which is led by Indonesia’s first female President Megawati Sukarnoputeri, who held office from 2001-2004. Prabowo , as the former general is commonly known, was supported in his bid for the presidency by a coalition of activist Islamic parties, as well as more notorious community groups such as the Islamic Defenders Front. During the six-...