In Indonesian media it was reported today (13/05) that Hatta Rajasa, the current Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs, will meet President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono this afternoon. It is speculated that in this meeting Rajasa wil ask permission to resign from his post in order to be able to run as Prabowo Subianto's running mate in the presidential election (9 July 2014). A 2008 law stipulates that ministers need to resign when participating in the election (as presidential or vice-presidential candidate) to avert a possible conflict of interest.

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Only minutes ahead of the deadline on Friday (09/05), the General Election Commission (KPU) released the official results of Indonesia’s 2014 legislative election. As had been expected, the official result is highly similar to the quick count results that had been published on the day of election (09/04). The current main opposition party the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) won the election, securing 18.95 percent of the vote, followed by Golkar (14.75 percent) and the Great Indonesia Movement Party (Gerindra) with 11.81 percent.

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Indonesian newspaper Investor Daily reported that on Friday 9 May 2014 Joko Widodo, the presidential candidate of the PDI-P (winner of the April 2014 legislative election), will announce his running mate for the presidential election. According to the newspaper, Surya Paloh - founder of the NasDem party - said that the running mate (vice-presidential candidate) has already been agreed upon although he declined to mention a name. The PDI-P and NasDem formed a coalition last month in order to nominate a presidential candidate.

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Two influential Indonesian political parties, Golkar and Gerindra, may form a coalition in order to nominate a presidential and vice-presidential candidate for Indonesia's presidential election that is scheduled for 9 July 2014. After the PDI-P, which won the legislative election on 9 April 2014 with approximately 19 percent of the vote, Golkar (15 percent) and Gerindra (12 percent) came in second and third. However, both these parties contain a leader who has presidential aspirations.

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After the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), winner of the 2014 legislative election of Indonesia, was reported to have formed an alliance with the NasDem party in order to nominate a presidential candidate for the presidential election that is scheduled for 9 July 2014, both the National Awakening Party (PKB) and the United Development Party (PPP) have also been approaching the PDI-P. Reportedly, the PKB has mentioned two candidates to the PDI-P to become Joko Widodo’s running mate in the election.

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Although Indonesia's benchmark stock index (known as the Jakarta Composite Index or IHSG) fell immediately after its opening on Monday (28/04), the index is expected to strengthen this week as Joko 'Jokowi' Widodo will announce his running mate for the 2014 presidential election. Jokowi is the presidential nominee of the PDI-P party (the largest opposition party in the Indonesian parliament), which won the legislative election in April 2014 by securing about 19 percent of the popular vote.

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The Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX) is optimistic that its target of a total of 30 new initial public offerings (IPOs) in 2014 will be achieved as the 2014 elections are expected to bring positive market sentiments. Companies and investors are confident that a stronger and more balanced government will be inaugurated in October 2014; one that will foster higher economic growth. Moreover, previous election years have always shown that Indonesia's stock market gets a positive boost amid these elections.

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Investors were not happy to see the parliamentary election result of Indonesia on Wednesday (09/04). The fragmented outcome implies continued political uncertainty toward the July 2014 presidential election. None of the Indonesian political parties were able to secure a majority in the legislative election, meaning it will be more difficult to pursue a clear and steady political course over the next five years. The PDI-P, which was forecast to secure an impressive victory on the 'Jokowi effect', was unable to record a large victory.

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No Indonesian political party managed to secure a majority in the legislative election that was held on Wednesday (09/04). Based on various quick counts (that have proved to be reliable in previous elections), the election was won by the PDI-P (19 percent), followed by Golkar (15 percent) and Gerindra (12 percent). This outcome implies that political parties will need to form coalitions in order to be able to nominate a presidential candidate for Indonesia's presidential election that is scheduled for 9 July 2014.

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After the polling stations closed at 13:00 local time on Wednesday (09/04), the quick count for Indonesia's 2014 legislative election has started. Contrary to previous election years, the General Election Commission (KPU) will not release the official results of the election quickly. The official outcome of the 2014 parliamentary election is expected to be announced on 9 May 2014. Below, the preliminary results of the quick count are presented. These scores may still be updated as new data come in.

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The central bank of Indonesia (Bank Indonesia) expects Indonesia's economic growth to slow to 5.77 percent (year-on-year) in the first quarter of 2014. However, despite this further slowing trend, the institution is content with recent macroeconomic developments: external demand is growing, while domestic demand is moderating, thus impacting positively on the country's current account deficit as well as inflation. Household consumption is expected to have grown in Q1-2014 due to the holding of legislative elections on 9 April 2014.

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Although several quick counts of today's legislative election in Indonesia still continue, the big picture is clear. The current opposition party PDI-P will win Indonesia's 2014 parliamentary election, followed by Golkar and Gerindra. This is no surprise as most surveys that were released ahead of the election indicated that these three political parties would be the major contenders. As a whole, the election went relatively smoothly, with only a few minor incidents. The official result will be announced on 9 May 2014.

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On Wednesday 9 April 2014, the Indonesian electorate (consisting of about 190 million people out of a total population of around 250 million) will vote for both the country's national and regional legislatures. This legislative election also bears a big influence on the presidential election that is scheduled for 9 July 2014 as a minimum of 25 percent of the popular vote in the legislative election (or 20 percent of seats in the House of Representatives, DPR) gives a party the authority to nominate a presidential candidate.

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After months of uncertainty and speculation, Governor of Jakarta Joko Widodo (popularly known as Jokowi) has finally declared to run for the Indonesian presidency in the presidential election scheduled for 9 July 2014. Jokowi is backed by the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), one of the largest political parties in Indonesia, led by chairwoman Megawati Sukarnoputri. On Friday (14/03), Megawati released a statement in which she announced to fully support Jokowi in the upcoming elections.

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Yesterday Lembaga Survei Indonesia (LSI), a leading Indonesian public opinion research institute, published the result of a survey that indicated Megawati Soekarnoputri is leading the poll to become the country's next president in 2014. In the survey she is closely followed by Aburizal Bakrie and Prabowo Subianto. This preliminary result can be regarded negative as these names are 'products' of the old regime and thus will not support further democratization.

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Next year, Indonesia will have new parliamentary and presidential elections. Now already, these elections are highly relevant as political parties need to find ways to gain popular support and need to look for the right presidential candidates. Political parties or coalitions of political parties that receive at least 20 percent of the votes during the parliamentary election, are allowed to nominate a presidential candidate. Thereafter, a presidential election - in which a few candidates participate - will decide the next Indonesian president.

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