Law Ministry Trials E-Voting for East Java Regional Office Head Selection

The Ministry of Law has begun testing a new approach to filling positions within the bureaucracy through the implementation of electronic voting (e-voting). The e-voting trial was conducted at the East Java Regional Office of the Ministry of Law by the Indonesian Minister of Law, Supratman Andi Agtas, involving employees casting votes for official candidates deemed worthy of leadership.

The e-voting trial is part of the Ministry of Law’s digital transformation, as well as a step to strengthen transparency and the application of talent management in the process of filling positions.

Secretary General of the Indonesian Ministry of Law, Nico Afinta, said technological developments need to be utilised to build faster, more precise, and more accountable governance. He assessed that digitalisation is not only to improve services to the public, but also targets internal services, including human resource management.

“The Minister of Law has launched a digital transformation programme, where the goal is to serve the public quickly, precisely, and accountably. This service is provided not only to the public, but also to our own internal [staff],” Nico said in a written statement on Tuesday (11/8/2026).

To support HR management, the Ministry of Law has developed a number of digital systems, one of which is the Satria system. This system allows employees to submit data regarding competencies, achievements, and track records that can become part of the talent management development process.

In addition, the Ministry of Law developed e-voting to map employees who have potential and achievements so they can be considered for filling certain positions.

Nico mentioned that the implementation of e-voting in East Java was the idea of Minister of Law Supratman Andi Agtas. East Java was chosen as the initial location to test the effectiveness of the mechanism before being implemented in other regions.

“The Minister said it would be good if the people who will lead are also asked about the place they are going to. Let’s try it, can this e-voting work?” he said.

Therefore, the hope is that all employees can exercise their voting rights freely and without pressure to determine candidates deemed capable of carrying out leadership duties.

On the other hand, Minister of Law Supratman Andi Agtas emphasised that the implementation of e-voting is not intended to replace the existing bureaucratic system. According to him, the mechanism is a form of delegation of the minister’s rights by providing space for employee participation in the process of determining official candidates.

“The e-voting we are doing now is an effort to strengthen the structure in regional offices, especially for colleagues who will later be trusted to become managerial officials, Regional Office Heads, or possibly also Division Heads and others,” said Supratman.

Nevertheless, he reminded that e-voting does not eliminate the structure, functions, duties, or authorities that have been established in the government system.

“Even though we conduct e-voting, do not forget there is a structure inside, there are functions, there are duties, there are authorities that must remain attached,” he stressed.

Supratman also confirmed that he has signed a Minister of Law Decree regarding the formation of a Talent Committee at the central and regional office levels.

At the central level, the Talent Committee is chaired by the Secretary General of the Ministry of Law. The committee is expected to ensure the process of filling positions takes place transparently by considering the qualifications and track records of employees.

“The most important thing is transparency in the recruitment of those who can fill certain positions that are indeed required to be filled,” he explained.

First Trial

Supratman said that the implementation of e-voting in Surabaya is an experimental step to find a new model in the process of filling positions within the government. He admitted to also seeking references regarding the possibility of implementing a similar mechanism in the selection of structural officials in government organisations. Therefore, the results of the trial in East Java will become evaluation material to determine the feasibility of implementing e-voting in other regions.

“If this is successful, then of course it can be used as a benchmark that in the future this can be done throughout the Ministry of Law,” he said.

Although providing space for employees to choose, Supratman ensured that elected officials must still comply with all rules and regulations applicable to state civil apparatus.

“It does not mean that with the e-voting we are doing now, those elected will be free from regulations related to state civil apparatus. That will remain the same,” he stressed.

He added that candidates participating in the e-voting process are not randomly selected candidates. All have gone through an assessment process and meet qualifications within the talent management framework developed by the Ministry of Law.

“Those born from this are not random people that you will choose. These are all people who have met the qualifications within the talent management framework that we have developed,” he said.

According to Supratman, the success of implementing the system ultimately depends on the ability of all elements of the organisation to build effective work patterns. Collaboration between regional office heads, division heads, structural officials, and employees is one of the important factors in ensuring the organisation runs well.

He stressed that innovation in the process of filling positions is not the ultimate goal. The more important thing is to ensure the bureaucracy can work effectively and transparently and continue to improve service quality.

The e-voting trial at the East Java Regional Office of the Ministry of Law is expected to be the first step towards more participatory, transparent, competency-based bureaucratic governance that prioritises talent management.

Meanwhile, Acting Head of the East Java Regional Office of the Ministry of Law, Raden Fadjar Widjanarko, expressed his appreciation for the attention and opportunity given to the ranks of the East Java Regional Office.

According to Fadjar, the presence of the Minister of Law in Surabaya was not merely a working visit, but an important moment for the Ministry of Law. This is because, for the first time in the history of the Ministry of Law, a minister was present to directly lead the process of selecting a high-ranking pratama official involving all employees.

He assessed that the implementation was a valuable experience as well as a new milestone in the application of bureaucratic governance that provides broader space for employee participation.