Depok poll body still busy with new voters
Depok poll body still busy with new voters
Bambang Nurbianto, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
With the Depok mayoral election just three days away, poll
committees in the municipality's 53 subdistricts are still busy
registering first-time voters and others not yet on voter lists.
"We have registered 250 new voters within two days up to 2
p.m. today (Thursday). We estimate there will be some 300 new
voters in the Kemirimuka subdistrict," polling station chairman
Rojudin told The Jakarta Post on Thursday.
The registrations would be closed at 9 p.m. on Thursday.
The new eligible voters would be added to the 16,746 residents
on the permanent eligible voters list (DPT), Rojudin said.
The re-registration drive was held on Wednesday and Thursday,
a day after the candidates' campaign period closed on June 22, in
response to protests students and supporters of candidate Nur
Mahmudi Ismail who had insisted there were many residents that
had never been recorded on the KPU's Depok voter list.
Currently, the Depok Elections Commission (KPUD Depok) has
registered 899,419 eligible voters.
Previously, an executive of the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS)
in Tugu subdistrict, Sugeng, said that there were some 6,000
eligible voters in the subdistrict who were not on the voter
lists.
He said 52,000 residents were listed as voters for the
presidential election last year. But only 41,605 residents
registered as voters for the mayoral election.
"I assumed that 2,000 residents had moved to other places or
died. Therefore, there are still some 6,000 residents, who have
not yet been registered," he said during a meeting with KPU Depok
recently.
Supporters for candidate Badrul Kamal, meanwhile, were not
happy with the re-registration.
Badrul's campaign team spokesman Muhammad Hasan said the voter
registration had been carried out properly and the reopening of
voter registrations was unnecessary, although many of Badrul's
supporters had also not been registered.
"We do not agree with the new registration because it will
burden the polling committees more," Hasan told the Post on
Thursday.
A recent telephone poll revealed that Badrul, who was
nominated by Golkar Party and the National Awakening Party, and
Nur Mahmudi, who was nominated by PKS, are the two most popular
of the five candidates running for mayor.
The three other candidates are Abdul Wahab Abidin, Yus
Ruswandi, and Harun Heryana.
KPUD chairman Zulfadli said that only those whose names
already on the temporary voter lists (DPS) could be submitted to
the DPT. But Rojudin said the subdistrict's polling committee
registered all residents who met the requirements.
"If we do not register residents who can show their ID, but
not on the DPS list, we are accused of discrimination. I am
afraid it will cause conflict among residents," Rojudin said.
According to KPUD staff Solihin Yusuf Sudarman, the commission
had printed 922,216 ballot voters and would print another 10,000
to anticipate the possible increase of voters after the new
registration.
Zulfadli said KPUD would distribute all election logistics and
Friday which would reach polling stations on Saturday.
Bambang Nurbianto, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
With the Depok mayoral election just three days away, poll
committees in the municipality's 53 subdistricts are still busy
registering first-time voters and others not yet on voter lists.
"We have registered 250 new voters within two days up to 2
p.m. today (Thursday). We estimate there will be some 300 new
voters in the Kemirimuka subdistrict," polling station chairman
Rojudin told The Jakarta Post on Thursday.
The registrations would be closed at 9 p.m. on Thursday.
The new eligible voters would be added to the 16,746 residents
on the permanent eligible voters list (DPT), Rojudin said.
The re-registration drive was held on Wednesday and Thursday,
a day after the candidates' campaign period closed on June 22, in
response to protests students and supporters of candidate Nur
Mahmudi Ismail who had insisted there were many residents that
had never been recorded on the KPU's Depok voter list.
Currently, the Depok Elections Commission (KPUD Depok) has
registered 899,419 eligible voters.
Previously, an executive of the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS)
in Tugu subdistrict, Sugeng, said that there were some 6,000
eligible voters in the subdistrict who were not on the voter
lists.
He said 52,000 residents were listed as voters for the
presidential election last year. But only 41,605 residents
registered as voters for the mayoral election.
"I assumed that 2,000 residents had moved to other places or
died. Therefore, there are still some 6,000 residents, who have
not yet been registered," he said during a meeting with KPU Depok
recently.
Supporters for candidate Badrul Kamal, meanwhile, were not
happy with the re-registration.
Badrul's campaign team spokesman Muhammad Hasan said the voter
registration had been carried out properly and the reopening of
voter registrations was unnecessary, although many of Badrul's
supporters had also not been registered.
"We do not agree with the new registration because it will
burden the polling committees more," Hasan told the Post on
Thursday.
A recent telephone poll revealed that Badrul, who was
nominated by Golkar Party and the National Awakening Party, and
Nur Mahmudi, who was nominated by PKS, are the two most popular
of the five candidates running for mayor.
The three other candidates are Abdul Wahab Abidin, Yus
Ruswandi, and Harun Heryana.
KPUD chairman Zulfadli said that only those whose names
already on the temporary voter lists (DPS) could be submitted to
the DPT. But Rojudin said the subdistrict's polling committee
registered all residents who met the requirements.
"If we do not register residents who can show their ID, but
not on the DPS list, we are accused of discrimination. I am
afraid it will cause conflict among residents," Rojudin said.
According to KPUD staff Solihin Yusuf Sudarman, the commission
had printed 922,216 ballot voters and would print another 10,000
to anticipate the possible increase of voters after the new
registration.
Zulfadli said KPUD would distribute all election logistics and
Friday which would reach polling stations on Saturday.