Kennial Caroline Laia – As the nation moves closer to the upcoming 2014 general elections, an often overlooked and underestimated group of voters may be a key factor in deciding the nation's future: its youth.

Indonesia's youth voters will make up 30 percent of the estimated 170 million registered voters, according to Central Statistics Agency (BPS) figures. Some 40 million voters between 17 and 30 years old will be electing the nation's new president and legislative candidates next year. An estimated 14 million of them will be first-time voters.

Disna Harvens, an officer with AyoVote, a youth initiative aimed at educating young voters ahead of the 2014 elections, said that despite being large in number, there remained a large chunk of the nation's youth who were reluctant to vote due to negative perceptions about Indonesian politics.

"Most of the youth think that their vote will not affect the outcome of the election. They are reluctant because of the stereotype, and they say politics is dirty and a field only for the older [generation]," Disna told the Jakarta Globe.

"Young voters should know that existing policies, or future ones established by the government, will have a direct impact on their lives, such as education policies or anti-pornography legislation."

Disna emphasized that the large number of youth votes next year was too important to be wasted.

For Rinaldy Sofwan Fakhrana, 22, taking part in next year's elections is not something to look forward to.

"Politics are dirty," Rinaldy said, arguing that none of the candidates were convincing or worthy of his trust.

He also noted that the electoral process in Indonesia remained corrupt.

"Each of the candidates have their own unfinished business. They don't have a good enough track record," he said.

Rinaldy cited Prabowo Subianto, the founder and chief patron of the Great Indonesia Movement Party (Gerindra), who was involved in the disappearance of student activists during the tumultuous period before the downfall of Suharto, his father-in-law.

Prabowo, a former Army general, is widely expected to run for president.

Rinaldy also cited Aburizal Bakrie, another presidential candidate and the chairman of the Golkar Party, who has long been criticized for his handling of a mud volcano in East Java that experts have attributed to gas drilling operations conducted by a company in his business empire.

Audrey Gabriella, 24, said she would not vote in next year's elections because politics did not interest her and because none of the candidates met her criteria for the ideal Indonesian leader.

"The leader of this country must prioritize the public interest and also listen to the public's opinions. He shouldn't act on behalf of certain parties," she said.

Despite the negative perceptions, a recent survey by pollster Indo Barometer involving 1,200 first-time voters nationwide showed that 86.9 percent of Indonesia's youth voters said they would vote.

"The survey results indicate high enthusiasm among young voters in the country," Indo Barometer executive director Muhammad Qodari said in Jakarta on Wednesday.

Of those who said they would not vote, 38.1 percent said they still needed to study the candidates' platforms.

Qodari said the result showed an improving opinion toward politics among first-time voters, with 81 percent agreeing that involvement in elections was an important step toward improving the nation's political scene. Some 73.5 percent said the elections were an important part of Indonesia's future.

Yunarto Wijaya, a political analyst from the consultancy Charta Politika, said that in the 2009 elections, the youth vote did not materialize as expected.

He said candidates this time around should take a fresh approach in trying to attract the younger demographic.

"Political candidates must use a new and fresh approach to get youths interested in politics," he said, citing strategies used by candidates in US presidential elections.

"When Barack Obama was first elected, he used third-party entities to eventually earn the biggest amount of voters in history," Yunarto said.

Candidates, he said, should implement a wide range of strategies to woo young voters, including engaging in critical dialogue with voters rather than preaching at them, as is typical in local campaigns.

"The second is culture and education, which means candidates must present fresh and youth-related issues," he said.

Yunarto said candidates should also be social media-savvy as well as promote campaigns that would benefit the youth communities.

"But many candidates are not directly involved in social media use. Most of them have administrators to do that, and still cling to a very formal and stiff style of language. That kind of approach won't work," he said.

In a bid to draw the youth vote, several presidential hopefuls have taken to social media, including Twitter.

Others have set up websites to promote their platforms and key campaign issues, while others have resorted to hiring individuals with Twitter followers in the tens of thousands, known as "influencers" or "buzzers," to sing their praises.

Yunarto said that while greater social media engagement was important for any candidate, its limitation was that it would only reach urban candidates, a large proportion of whom access such media through their smartphones and computers. Voters in rural areas, who still make up the majority of the country's voter base, will need to be approached using a completely different strategy, he said.

Disna said it was necessary for youths to realize that their involvement at the ballot box was important. "They have to determine their own future through their involvement in the election," he said.

Full disclosure: AyoVote is affiliated with the Jakarta Globe and BeritaSatu Media Holdings.