The Only Candidate In the Makassar Mayoral Race Just Lost to an Empty Box

Voters in Makassar had a simple choice in last month's mayoral race, either select a first-time politician with connections to the family of the current vice president or an empty white box. The box won.

More than 300,000 voters chose the empty box over the only candidate eligible to run in what had become an uncontested race. The city's incumbent mayor Ramadhan Pomanto, a man more popularly known as Danny, was disqualified by the elections commission for violating Indonesia's regional elections law by providing more than 6,000 free smartphones to local community chiefs (RT/RW) ahead of the campaign season.

That left Munafri Arifuddin and his running-mate Andi Rachmatika Dewi alone in the race. The pair, who went by the name Appi-Cicu, appeared on the ballot next to an empty white box. No one was told they could choose the empty box as well, but more than 300,000 voters did just that. In the end, Appi-Cicu were only able to secure 47 percent of the vote, just three percent shy of the threshold, according to official tallies released this week.

This is literally the first time this has happened in Indonesia. The country transitioned to democracy only 20 years ago, and while plenty of voters have, in the past, chosen to " golput," or abstain from the vote, never before have voters overwhelmingly selected "no one" in an election.

Thankfully, the elections commission has a while to figure this out. Danny, the incumbent, will remain in office until 2019, and there are already talks of holding a new election, not just a revote, by 2020.

But how did this happen and what's it all mean for future races in Indonesia? VICE contributor Eko Rusdianto asked voters about what made the empty box so appealing (or Appi-Cuci so unappealing).

VICE: Do you usually vote in these local elections?
Zulham Karyadi: No. I really only voted in this Makassar mayoral race so far. Before now, I didn't care much about politics.

What changed your mind here?
I saw a lot of changes in Makassar during the last mayor's term in office. This was the main factor that encouraged me to try to make sure we had a good, hard-working leader.

What's the criteria for a good leader?
Well, obviously, I study and observe the performance of the candidates. I will only choose someone who I think has a good track record. I saw that in Danny Pomanto and Moh Ramdhan Pomanto. But then he was disqualified and I was disappointed.

And that made you choose no one on the ballot?
Yeah. It's because I love Makassar and I can't stand to see it go backwards again.

Did you study the rival candidates'—Munafri Afiruddin and Rachmatika Dewi—programs and policies as well?
I studied everything and had enough time to consider things. For me, all the programs being offered by the other candidates were already executed by Danny. I think Danny has done a great job here and he just needs to continue doing it.

So you voted for the empty box instead?
Correct. I chose the empty ballot because I supported the incumbent, who was disqualified by the General Elections Commission (KPU) for unclear reasons.

You're not the only one. The empty ballot got the most votes in the election. What does that mean to you that voters chose no one in an uncontested race?
You could say that this was Danny's victory.

VICE: Do usually vote in local elections?
Mansyur Rahim: I didn’t vote last time. The candidates didn't have what I was looking for.

So what made you vote in this one?
It’s about choice. There was only one pair of candidates against an empty ballot. It was interesting because we were still given an alternative to choose here. If there were a lot of candidates instead, and most likely none of them were up to the standard, we would just have to choose from what's available.

How do you choose your leaders?
I study and observe the candidates, and their personal capacities. The most important thing is to see what kind of programs they offer, what kinds of solutions they have. I also look up information about them. It's easier these days because now there's the internet and you can easily figure out a candidate's history. I also look at the political parties they are affiliated with, and if I find anything problematic, then I won't vote for them.

So the empty ballot was the best choice here?
The election only offered a single candidate pair, and, to me, the pair didn't map out the right programs or solutions to the problems Makassar faces today.

I made my own list of the qualities a leader should have in Makassar. I posted it on social media before the incumbent got disqualified. It was things like public transportation, reducing the number of private vehicles on the road, forbidding underage kids to drive a vehicle, stopping the Losari reclamation project, fixing the city's drainage system, and cleaning up all the rivers, reservoirs, and canals.

I didn't see the single candidate pair as having a vision to fix these problems. So, of course, I went for the empty ballot instead.

What about Appi? How did you feel about him?
I don't know much about Appi. I only know that he worked as the manager of PSM Makassar and, from what I know, his performance there was nothing to rave about. I also know that Appi is a part of the Aksa Mahmud and Jusuf Kalla family. To me, this means there will be a conflict of family interest.

Does your choice of the empty ballot mean you supported the incumbent mayor?
No. It's wrong to assume that. I only chose the empty ballot out of hope that there will an election with more candidates, one who can actually come with programs that benefit the interests of Makassar.