The twists and turns to the presidency

Never before have I experienced such a roller-coaster elections in Indonesia. I was excited when I began observing the campaign in March 2014. It seemed like Indonesia’s democracy was maturing. Parties used sophisticated campaign methods, there were fewer traffic-stopping mass rallies and evidence of more direct approach to voters. The Jokowi-popularised blusukan [impromptu visits] taught voters to demand more from their candidates and these visits certainly dominated the campaigns signifying the maturing of voters as well. Massive vote-buying was still rampant but overall progress could clearly be felt.