Who's Next?

I would like to preface this post by saying that I am not even close to being an expert in Indonesian politics. All of the information that is in this post has come from research that I have done on the internet. If anything that I have written is incorrect, please kindly notify me, and I will change it.

I've been reading up on all things Indonesia, and I've learned that my first few months there are sure to be interesting when it comes to politics. This year is a presidential election year, and the legislative elections took place in April. Due to the fact that the current president, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (also known as SBY), has served for two terms, he cannot constitutionally run for office again. Since Indonesian presidential terms last for five years, this will be the first time that Indonesia will have had a new president since 2004. As far as I know, voters will be choosing between two candidates, Joko Widodo and Prabowo Subianto.

(I had a picture of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono here, but it seems as if it has disappeared! As long as I remember, I will replace it.)

Joko Widodo

Prabowo Subianto

After doing some research, I found out that election day is July 9th, but there may be another round of elections in September if it's necessary. The voting age in Indonesia is actually 17, one year younger than that of the United States, but one can also have the right to vote by marriage.

The next president's inauguration will be held on October 20th, so I'll be able to see what that's like while I'm in the country. I'm pretty excited to see how the election turns out, and I'll probably end up making a post about the winner.

PDO is getting pretty close, so my next post may not be until after that. 

Selamat tinggal!

P.S. This is completely off topic, but my application was just accepted by AFS-Indonesia yesterday. That means that they can start looking for my host family!