Indonesians head to polls to elect new president

JAKARTA, Feb 14 (Bernama) -- Indonesians went to the polls in conjunction with the 2024 General Election (Pemilu) at more than 800,000 polling stations that opened across the country on Wednesday to elect a new president and vice-president, as well as members of the legislature.

President Joko Widodo, better known as Jokowi, and his wife, Iriana, voted in Gambir, Central Jakarta. They were among the approximately 204.8 million voters participating in the democratic process.

Jokowi, when met by the media after voting, said he hoped the election would be a festival of democracy for the people that would allow them to choose their candidates and parties freely, freely and fairly.

"We will wait together," he said about the choice of the Indonesian people.

Polling centres open at 7am local time and are scheduled to close at 1pm.

The presidential and vice-presidential candidates in the Pemilu were present at polling stations in their respective areas to carry out their responsibility as voters.

Anis Baswedan, 54, and vice-presidential candidate Muhaimin Iskandar, 57, each voted in Lebak Bulus and Bangka, South Jakarta, when cloudy weather and light rain were reported early in the morning.

After casting his ballot, Anies said he hoped the election would go smoothly until the counting was completed and expressed his appreciation to officers who had worked hard.

Prabowo Subianto, 78, exercised his right to vote in Bogor, West Java, while his running mate, Gibran Rakabuming Raka, 36, who is also Jokowi's eldest son, in Solo, Central Java.

Ganjar Pranowo, 55, voted in Semarang, Central Java, while his running mate, Mahfud MD, voted in Sleman, Yogyakarta.

-- BERNAMA