Badung Regency Finalises Schedule for 2026 Simultaneous Village Head Elections
The Badung Regency Government (Pemkab) has begun finalising preparations for the 2026 simultaneous Village Head Election (Pilkel) by holding an initial meeting with relevant agencies. This village-level political agenda is confirmed to be held in three villages within the Mengwi District, namely Sobangan Village, Baha Village, and Munggu Village.
“With the Bupati’s permission, the schedule we proposed has been approved to be implemented this year with reference to the latest regulations. The essence is that existing regulations, whether Ministerial Regulations, Regional Regulations, or Bupati Regulations, can still be used as long as their articles do not conflict with higher rules,” said the Head of the Badung Community and Village Empowerment Agency (PMD), I Komang Budhi Argawa, on Wednesday (1/7/2026).
Based on the timeline that has been drawn up, the crucial stages will begin with the opening of registration for village head candidates from 20 to 28 July 2026. Meanwhile, the peak of the village-level democratic event, or voting day, is scheduled to take place on 17 November 2026.
“There is still much we need to confirm, and it is not enough to meet just once or twice to align our perceptions. Later in July, specifically from 20 to 28 July, we will enter the registration and announcement stage,” said Budhi Argawa.
This initial meeting involved the KPU, police, TNI, the Badung District Attorney’s Office (Kejari), and the Denpasar District Court (PN) to anticipate various potential obstacles. The main focus of this cross-sector coordination includes matching voter data, accelerating the administration of candidate certificates, and mapping conflict vulnerabilities.
Beyond data and security issues, the Badung Regency Government is also paying special attention to the rules on single candidates and the restriction of physical campaign props to maintain environmental cleanliness. A single candidate can still proceed to compete against an empty box if there is an agreement between the village committee and the Village Consultative Body (BPD).
“Specifically for banners, we have determined certain designated locations so there are not too many and they do not pollute the environment. Later, candidates might maximise the use of social media to reduce campaign waste,” said Budhi Argawa.
Previously, the Badung PMD Agency had stated that this year’s village head election implementation contains quite fundamental new substance regarding the handling of single candidates. Although the umbrella regulations, namely Law Number 3 of 2024 and Government Regulation Number 16 of 2026, have given their approval, the region was still awaiting technical clarity from the Minister of Home Affairs Regulation (Permendagri).
“With the enactment of Law 3/2024 and PP 16/2026, the implementation of the village head election indeed has some slightly changed and quite substantial substance for all of us. In the new regulation, if there is only one village head candidate and after two extensions there remains only one candidate, the opportunity is given to proceed,” said Budi Argawa in June 2026.
He stressed that if the BPD and the local committee fail to reach a consensus to proceed with a single candidate, the voting agenda will automatically be postponed to the next wave. However, aside from the matter of handling single candidates, the Badung Regency Government ensures that all standard stages from planning to the appointment of the elected village head will proceed normatively and the regional situation is confirmed to be safe and under control.
“The continuation of the village head election with a single candidate cannot be decided unilaterally but must obtain a joint agreement at the village level. Tiered socialisation programmes are also being intensively rolled out to align perceptions of the standard rules of the game at the lowest level,” concluded Budhi Argawa.