Presidential Election of Indonesia

Governors across the country declared Tuesday their preparedness for Wednesday’s presidential election, and pledged to uphold the Constitutional Court’s ruling to allow unregistered voters to cast ballots using their ID cards.


The governors made the pledge during a video conference with President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, who is one of the three contenders in the race.

The President told the 33 governors to stay "neutral and professional" in holding the election, and help the General Elections Commission (KPU) implement the new Constitutional Court ruling.

"The KPU has abundant work to do, especially on the Constitutional Court's ruling yesterday,” Yudhoyono said at the Presidential Palace. “They have now more jobs to do, so you must help them ensure that voting day tomorrow runs well."

Jakarta Governor Fauzi Bowo said the local branch of the KPU, the KPUD, had prepared reserve ballots amounting to 10 percent of the number of registered voters in the city.

"We have distributed the reserve ballots to areas where we expect to see more unlisted voters," he said.

East Java Governor Soekarwo said the local KPUD was ready to implement the Constitutional Court ruling, while Bali Governor Made Mangku Pastika said the verdict had solved the problem facing unregistered voters.

The video conference lasted about an hour. A total of 11 governors reported on their latest preparations in their respective provinces ahead of tomorrow's polls, while others listened.