The simultaneous elections took place in 37 provinces, 415 districts, and 93 cities, with a total of 1,557 candidate pairs vying for the top posts in regional governments.
Elected governors and deputy governors will be sworn in on February 7, 2025, while mayors, vice mayors, and district leaders will be inaugurated on February 10.
All citizens who had voting rights and were eligible to vote, including the President and Vice President, cast their ballot at polling stations spread across the regions.
President Prabowo Subianto and Vice President Gibran Rakabuming Raka voted in their respective areas on Wednesday.
Prabowo arrived at a polling station (TPS) in Babakan Madang, Bogor district, West Java, at 8:41 a.m. local time. He was registered on the polling station's electoral roll with around 600 other people.
Speaking to the press after voting, Prabowo urged elected regional leaders to work for the people.
"In every election, there are those who win and those who lose. Cooperation is a must. Those who win must be a leader for all, and those who lose must cooperate," he said before leaving the polling station.
In Solo City, Central Java, Vice President Gibran, accompanied by his wife Selvi Ananda, arrived at a polling station in the Banjarsari neighborhood area at 10:25 a.m. local time.
After casting his vote, Gibran thanked the officers serving in the elections.
"For the media, thank you for waiting. I would like to thank the General Elections Commission (KPU), the General Election Supervisory Agency (Bawaslu), and the polling station officers," he said.
Meanwhile, residents across the country, including in the seven major islands, participated in the democratic process as voters and even got involved in the organizing teams. As the elections were held simultaneously, many things unfolded, both good and bad.
Sumatra Island
The KPU of North Sumatra, the largest province on the island, said that 110 polling stations had to postpone the voting process due to floods that affected a number of areas.
"In addition to the 110 TPSes that postponed the voting process, there were six TPSes that will carry out follow-up voting," chairperson of the North Sumatra KPU, Agus Arifin, informed.
In South Sumatra, more than 12 thousand inmates at 20 correctional institutions and detention centers cast their ballot on voting day.
In Aceh, the westernmost province of Indonesia, the Pilkada implementation went smoothly.
"From the reports we received, the 2024 Pilkada voting day went orderly. More voters in Aceh exercised their rights to vote," acting governor of Aceh, Safrizal ZA, said.
Java Island
Acting governor of East Java, Adhy Karyono, said that the election implementation in East Java ran well.
"I am monitoring several TPSes; so far, there have been no worrisome things. The voting processes went well," Karyono informed while reviewing the Pilkada voting implementation at a social service and rehabilitation center in Sidoarjo.
Acting governor of West Java, Bey Triadi Machmudin, said that the voting process in 27 districts/cities went smoothly and safely despite rain in some areas.
Meanwhile, chief of the Yogyakarta City Police, Senior Commissioner Aditya Surya Dharma, informed that the voting process in the province went well. His side deployed 290 personnel to guard 651 TPSes in the region.
Kalimantan Island
It was reported that two members of the voting organizing group (KPPS) at TPS 04 in Selat Utara village, Kapuas district, Central Kalimantan, were arrested on suspicion of illegally punching ballots.
"Meanwhile, this has been investigated and followed up in accordance with the applicable election law," Kapuas district Bawaslu head Iswahyudi Wibowo said.
In South Kalimantan, the Regional Disaster Mitigation Agency (BPBD) dispatched a team of personnel to anticipate disaster events in vulnerable areas.
Sulawesi Island
Acting governor of South Sulawesi, Zudan Arif Fakrulloh, said that the Pilkada implementation in the province ran successfully.
"This was reported by the (local) KPU and Bawaslu," he added while reviewing a TPS in Bontoa, Maros district.
According to the chairperson of Gorontalo province KPU, Sophian Rahmola, the Pilkada implementation in the region was transparent.
"All of the processes were open, nothing was covered up. Bawaslu also carried out supervision. We are intensively collaborating with the mass media so that all stages can be witnessed and monitored directly by the public," he said.
Lesser Sunda Islands
During the Pilkada, acting governor of Bali, Sang Made Mahendra Jaya, visited a polling station (TPS) that had an all-women organizing team belonging to Gen Z.
"This is a different (TPS). This is the first and only TPS with all Generation Z and women as the team, the security is also a policewoman," Jaya said at the TPS 08 Banjar Kertasari polling station in Panjer Village, Denpasar.
He observed that TPS 08 was cleaner than other polling stations. The team there also gave eco enzymes for free to voters who exercised their voting rights.
Chief of the East Nusa Tenggara (NTT) Regional Police, Inspector General Daniel Tahi Monang Silitonga, said that the Pilkada implementation in the archipelagic province ran safely and smoothly.
"We and the NTT Regional Leadership Communication Forum (Forkopimda) have checked the readiness before, (and) today, we ensure that the voting runs based on the rules, safe and smooth," he told reporters.
Maluku and Papua
On Tuesday, the day before the election, personnel of the Southwest Maluku District Police, Maluku province, walked for three hours to escort election logistics to TPSes located in villages.
"Due to the unsupportive road infrastructure, the election logistics distribution to some regions in the district required extra struggle," chief of the Southwest Maluku Police, Adjunct Senior Commissioner Pulung Wietono, said in Ambon.
Meanwhile, the Papua Regional Police said that public security and order remained conducive during the Pilkada.
"We do not deny that in the Papua Pegunungan and Central Papua (provinces) there were some issues, but so far they are still conducive," chief of the Papua Police, Brigadier General Patrige Renwarin, said.
According to Deputy Minister of Home Affairs, Ribka Haluk, Jayapura was the benchmark for the implementation of peaceful Pilkada in the land of Papua.
"We believe that the voting process was smooth because of the good communication built by the local government and the Papua regional leadership coordination forum (Forkopimda)," she added.
Related news: AHY urges all contestants to accept regional election results
Related news: Jambi's Hok Khen Tong Temple serves as Pilkada polling station
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
Copyright © ANTARA 2024
