A gubernatorial election was held across the province of North Kalimantan on 8 December 2015, to elect the province's governor for the 2016-2021 five-year term. There were two pairs contesting the election, and Irianto Lambrie who had previously taken a temporary post as the province's governor defeated former Tarakan mayor Jusuf Serang Kasim.
The election was first to be held in North Kalimantan, which is Indonesia's youngest province. Following the voting, riots occurred in the provincial capital of Tanjungselor protesting the results.
Background In October 2012, North Kalimantan was carved out of the northern regencies and cities of East Kalimantan province. It became Indonesia's 34th and youngest province. The Ministry of Home Affairs initially handled the administration of the province, before appointing East Kalimantan's provincial secretary Irianto Lambrie as acting governor in April 2013. His term lasted for two one-year terms, before the ministry replaced him on 22 April 2015 with Triyono Budi Sasongko.
Timeline Registration for candidates backed by political parties were opened between 26 and 28 July 2015, with independent contestants registering in June. After a series of verifications and checks, the eligible candidates were announced on 24 August with their ballot numbers assigned the following day. The campaigning period officially ran between 27 August and 5 December. Following a 3-day election silence, voting was held on 9 December. Votes are recapitulated up across administrative divisions and the results were to be announced on 21 December 2015, although exact dates may vary.
There were over 430,000 eligible voters who voted in 612 polling stations across the province. Due to the sheer size of the province and sparse population, ballot boxes and other election-related logistics had to be delivered by plane and speedboats. In total, the election required a budget of Rp 96 billion (US$6.9 million).
Candidates # Candidate Most recent position Running mate Parties 1 Jusuf Serang Kasim Mayor of Tarakan (1999-2009) Marthin Billa HanuraNasdemPKBPKPI 2 Irianto Lambrie Acting governor of North Kalimantan (2013-2015) Udin Hianggio PDI-PDemokratGolkarGerindraPKSPANPPPPBB
Results Votes by subdivision Jusuf-Marthin Irianto-Udin Votes % Votes % Bulungan Regency 27,018 45.66 32,149 54.34 Tarakan 35,995 45.09 43,833 54.91 Malinau Regency 20,294 59.34 13,907 40.66 Nunukan 37,068 43.83 47,510 56.17 Tana Tidung Regency 5,639 49.43 5,770 50.57Total 126,014 46.81 143,169 53.19Valid votes269,06697.62Invalid votes6,7862.38Turnout275,78163.01Registered voters437,663
Aftermath Early quick count results by Indikator favored the Irianto-Udin pair. During a plenary vote-tallying meeting on 19 December, supporters of the Jusuf-Marthin pair rioted in Tanjungselor, burning cars and buildings in the gubernatorial complex and forcing the deployment of soldiers. Following the riots, vice governor candidate Marthin Billa was arrested on suspicion of organizing them although he was not jailed and was only required to report weekly.
The election was disputed in the Constitutional Court although it upheld the results. Irianto and Udin were sworn in by president Joko Widodo on 12 February 2016.
Notes
References