Regional Head Elections preparations at 90 percent: Deputy Minister

Home Affairs Deputy Minister Bima Arya Sugiarto (right) and Deputy Coordinating Minister for Political and Security Affairs Lodewijk Paulus at a coordination meeting on the 2024 Regional Head Elections preparations in Jakarta on Friday (November 22, 2024). ANTARA/HO-Kemenko Polkam

Jakarta (ANTARA) - Technical preparations for the 2024 simultaneous Regional Head Elections (Pilkada) scheduled for November 27, including disaster mitigation and logistics distribution, have progressed to 90 percent, Home Affairs Deputy Minister Bima Arya Sugiarto stated.

Speaking after a coordination meeting on Pilkada preparations at his office on Friday (November 22), he remarked that Deputy Coordinating Minister for Political and Security Affairs Lodewijk Paulus has pushed to enhance the quality of this year's elections.

The deputy minister remarked that several adjustments to the upcoming elections are expected to result in a higher rate of people's participation.

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"Collaborative actions are required to invite people to cast their ballots," the former mayor of Bogor stated.

He then noted that the Ministry of Home Affairs has been focused on assisting the General Elections Commission (KPU) in making electoral preparations in regions deemed hard to reach and vulnerable to disasters to ensure locals' participation on voting day.

"We will visit East Flores to ensure that evacuees can exercise their voting rights," the minister remarked while referring to people displaced by the eruptions of Mount Lewotobi Laki-laki in East Flores, East Nusa Tenggara.

The KPU has appealed to all parties to help maintain conduciveness during Pilkada's quiet period on November 24-26.

When contacted by ANTARA from Jakarta on the same day, KPU Chairperson Mochammad Afifuddin also called on those running for the elections to remove their campaign props for the period.

"We will coordinate with the Bawaslu (General Elections Supervisory Agency) and campaign teams regarding that matter," Afifuddin remarked.

He also urged all parties to remain obedient to prevailing rules on the final day of the campaign period.

On November 27, a total of 545 regions will hold simultaneous elections, comprising 37 provinces, 415 districts, and 93 cities. The government has declared the voting day a national holiday.

The process of calculating and recapitulating the votes is scheduled from November 27 until December 16, 2024.