Arnoldus Kristianus, Jakarta – The Indonesian government has spent Rp 59 trillion ($3.6 billion) on the presidential and legislative elections under a multi-year budget that began during the preparatory phase in 2022, Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati revealed on Friday.

The spending spree will continue as all 38 provinces, along with hundreds of regencies and cities, are set to hold simultaneous elections for governors, regents, and mayors scheduled for November 27.

The election budget is allocated at Rp 3.1 trillion in 2022, Rp 29.9 trillion in 2023, and Rp 38.3 trillion for this year.

"The election spending for 2024 has already reached Rp 26 trillion, almost 70 percent of the amount allocated for this year," Sri Mulyani said in a news conference at her office in Jakarta.

The General Election Commission (KPU) and the Election Oversight Body (Bawaslu) are the largest recipients of the budget, receiving Rp 26 trillion and Rp 23.8 trillion, respectively.

Most of the spending is dedicated to election logistics and fees for millions of poll workers. Overseas voting required separate funding amounting to Rp 2.2 trillion.

The entire budget until the upcoming local leader elections stands at Rp 71.3 trillion.

The February 14 elections for parliament members and the president are arguably the world's largest single-day elections.

In Indonesia, over 200 million registered voters participate in electing the president and parliamentary members on a single day, managed through a centralized system overseen by the General Election Commission (KPU).

They elected members of the Regional Legislative Council, the House of Representatives, and the provincial and municipal legislative councils simultaneously in one day.

The colossal work involved nearly 8 million poll workers and around 800,000 supervisors at polling stations.

Source: https://jakartaglobe.id/news/indonesia-spends-rp-59-trillion-on-elections-and-countin