Controversial former army general Prabowo Subianto, who was defeated in Indonesia's 2014 presidential election, is expected to challenge the election result in the Constitutional Court, claiming that the election has been influenced by massive vote fraud. Yesterday (22/07), prior to the official release of the election result by the General Elections Commission (KPU), Subianto already withdrew from the recapitulation process. Rival Joko Widodo (Jokowi) won the election securing 53.15 percent of the votes.

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The benchmark stock index of Indonesia (Jakarta Composite Index, or IHSG) may reach a new record high level this week after market favourite Joko Widodo - popularly known as Jokowi - was officially announced the winner of the 2014 presidential election by the General Elections Commission (KPU) on Tuesday (22/07). Not unimportantly, the final decision was not accompanied by any riots or social unrest Jakarta or other parts of the Archipelago, thus giving investors some more peace of mind regarding the stability of Indonesian assets.

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On Tuesday evening (22/07), the General Elections Commission (KPU) officially declared Joko Widodo, popularly known as Jokowi, the winner of the 2014 presidential election. Jokowi beat Prabowo Subianto, a controversial former army general, by 53.15 to 46.85 percent. Subianto did not witness the announcement. Several hours earlier, when news started to spread about a Jokowi win, Subianto announced to withdraw from the vote-counting process. He will challenge the result in the country's Constitutional Court (the ruling is expected in late August).

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The performance of the Indonesian rupiah exchange rate and stocks has been impacted by defeated presidential candidate Prabowo Subianto’s withdrawal from the General Elections Commission’s electoral process on Tuesday (22/07). Although the Commission (KPU) has not publicly announced the outcome of the 2014 presidential election yet, Subianto’s response is a clear sign that rival Joko Widodo - as expected - has won the election. Subianto claims that the KPU is corrupt and will challenge the outcome in the Constitutional Court.

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The General Elections Commission (KPU) is expected to release the official result of the 2014 Indonesian presidential election after 16:00 pm local Jakarta time on Tuesday (22/07/2014). First, the institution will complete the recapitulation of votes in the five remaining Indonesian provinces as well as the votes that have been cast abroad, across 96 countries. Based on the preliminary results of the KPU and various credible quick counts, Joko Widodo (Jokowi) has won the election by a five percentage point margin.

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With only one more day to go before the General Elections Commission (KPU) will release the official result of the July 2014 presidential election, it seems almost certain that it will take a Constitutional Court ruling for the final judgement. Over the weekend, data from KPU indicates that Joko Widodo has won the election by a margin of about five percentage points. However, his rival Prabowo Subianto has already stated that he will challenge the result as he claims that there are indications of fraud at several polling stations.

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On 20 July 2014, Indonesia Investments released the latest edition of its newsletter. This free newsletter, which is sent to our subscribers once per week, contains the most important news stories from Indonesia that have been reported on our website in the last seven days. Most of the topics involve political and economic topics such as the presidential election, the influence of the Malaysia Airlines crash, two high profile corruption cases, coal mining, an update on July inflation, and more.

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Indonesian president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, who will end his second and final five-year term in October 2014, announced to meet both presidential candidates (Prabowo Subianto and Joko Widodo) in the country’s State Palace on Sunday (20/07). In this meeting, president Yudhoyono will emphasize the importance of a peaceful and orderly transition to the next government. Currently, it remains unknown who of the two candidates won the presidential election (held on 9 July 2014). Due to the tight race, chances of social unrest increase.

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Although investors in Indonesian stocks received positive news from the USA after Federal Reserve Head Janet Yellen stated on Tuesday (15/07) that the US economic recovery remains incomplete therefore justifying the continuation of a loose monetary policy for the foreseeable future as well as solid economic expansion of 7.5 percent (yoy) in China during the second quarter of 2014, the domestic political context in Southeast Asia’s largest economy remains a concern. What are the latest political developments in Indonesia?

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On 13 July 2014, Indonesia Investments released the latest edition of its newsletter. This free newsletter, which is sent to our subscribers once per week, contains the most important news stories from Indonesia that have been reported on our website in the last seven days. Most of the topics involve political and economic topics such as the presidential election, an analysis of the interest rate environment, car sales, IPOs on the Indonesia Stock Exchange, a tender announcement, and more.

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On 23 September 2018 the campaign period officially started for Indonesia’s 2019 presidential election. This period runs up to 13 April 2019 (while the election is scheduled for 17 April 2019). Despite the start of the campaign period it has remained rather calm between the two opposing sides: (1) incumbent President Joko Widodo with Islamic clerk Ma’ruf Amin versus (2) Gerindra Chairman Prabowo Subianto with businessman Sandiaga Uno.

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It is finally clear which pairs will compete in Indonesia’s 2019 presidential election. On Saturday August 10th, 2018 (only hours before the deadline ended), political parties officially registered their presidential and vice-presidential candidates at the General Elections Commission (in Indonesian: Komisi Pemilihan Umum, or KPU). As was widely assumed, only two pairs will compete in the 2019 presidential election. Thus, there are also two coalitions of political parties.

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It was a very exciting afternoon and evening on Friday (09 August 2018), especially for those who follow contemporary Indonesian politics as well as those who love sinetron (Indonesian soap operas) since there occurred plenty of drama. At the end of the day it became clear that two pairs (consisting of a presidential and vice-presidential candidate) will compete in the 2019 presidential election: (1) Joko Widodo and Ma'ruf Amin versus (2) Prabowo Subianto and Sandiaga Uno.

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Indonesia's 2019 presidential election is likely to become another battle between incumbent President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) and Gerindra party Chairman Prabowo Subianto. Both men had already been engaged in a fierce contest in 2014, one that was only narrowly won by Jokowi. On Wednesday evening (11/04) Subianto formally accepted the mandate of the Gerindra party to compete as presidential candidate in the 2019 presidential election (scheduled for 17 April 2019).

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Investors will need to keep an eye on Indonesia's political years of 2018 (regional elections) and 2019 (legislative elections) as the outcomes can have a big impact on the investment climate and business climate of Indonesia. Most eyes will be on the legislative and presidential elections of 2019.

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Around the globe media reported about the controversial decision of the Jakarta Court to hand a two-year prison sentence to former Jakarta Governor Basuki Tjahaja Purnama (better known as Ahok), a much tougher sentence than had been demanded by prosecutors. Ahok, a Christian from Chinese descent, was imprisoned on grounds of blasphemy. However, most analysts assume Ahok is victim of a flawed and corrupt political and judicial system.

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After having carefully followed the 2017 gubernatorial election in Indonesia's capital city of Jakarta, there are a couple of worrying signs. One, the rising influence of hardline Islam on Indonesian politics (and prosecution). Two, the rising influence of a handful of Indonesian "billionaire" businessmen, led by controversial Prabowo Subianto, who seek the highest political power within Southeast Asia's largest economy. Three, the cooperation between the two aforementioned forces as they each strive to fulfill their (separate) ambitions.

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Basuki Tjahaja Purnama (better known as Ahok) has been inaugurated as the 17th Governor of Jakarta by Indonesian President Joko Widodo on Wednesday (19/11) The position of Jakarta Governor was previously empty as former Governor Widodo stepped down from this position to focus on a (successful) presidential campaign. Although by law the Deputy Governor (Ahok) automatically becomes the new Governor, this has met fierce resistance from certain sides as Ahok is an ethnic Chinese Christian. This news article is the updated version of an article that was first published on 18 November 2014

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Indonesian stocks and the rupiah have rebounded on Friday due to several internal and external factors. During the first trading session on Friday (17/10), the benchmark stock index of Indonesia (Jakarta Composite Index, or IHSG) surged 0.94 percent to 4,998.14 points. Meanwhile, based on the Bloomberg Dollar Index, the Indonesian rupiah exchange rate had appreciated 0.26 percent to IDR 12,228 per US dollar by 12:30 pm local Jakarta time. Why do Indonesian stocks and the rupiah perform well on Friday?

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The benchmark stock index of Indonesia (Jakarta Composite Index, abbreviated IHSG) took another dive on Wednesday (08/10). The decline was not only caused by the negative influence of declining stock indices in the USA and Europe on the previous day, triggered by the downgraded global economic growth forecast released by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) but also because the market responded negatively to the voting result for the post of speaker of the People’s Consultative Assembly (or MPR).

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