Poll registration period extended

JAKARTA (JP): The Jakarta Provincial Elections Committee (PPD I) has extended the final voter registration period from May 5 to May 11, to give another chance for eligible voters in the capital to sign up.

PPD I chairman Djafar Badjeber said on Tuesday that the decision was taken based on instructions from the General Elections Commission (KPU) received two days earlier.

"I hope more and more eligible voters will make use of the chance. The number of registrants in the city is already excellent, with more than four million people registered," he said.

As of Tuesday morning, PPD I had recorded 4,768,057 registered voters for the June 7 general election, the first since the end of Soeharto's 32-year rule.

Unlike the previous general elections, the upcoming poll allows people from outside Jakarta to register and vote in the capital.

Thus, voters registered here are expected to exceed the official number of 5.8 million eligible voters in the city. (ind)