In May, a senior team of Australian Labor campaigners presented a seminar on polling and campaigning for representatives of Indonesia’s main political parties, polling organisations, and democracy building and civil society organisations.

Date:  13 August 2008

Organised in partnership with the Jakarta Office of the National Democratic Institute for International Affairs (NDI), the program attracted 50 of Indonesia’s leading campaigners and strategic and public pollsters plus observers from diplomatic missions, civil society organisations and media. The seminar was organised in conjunction with a series of party-to-party consultations between Australian Labor and its major Indonesian counterparts.

While qualitative and quantitative polling techniques are used only sparingly in Indonesian elections, popularity polling is a common feature of Indonesian political campaigns. The seminar and consultations helped frame debates in Indonesia about the role polling can play during election campaigns, especially in relation to building campaigns on issues of public relevance, mobilising core votes and reaching out to undecided voters.

The seminar was followed up by a series of consultations with the national headquarters of Indonesia’s main political parties.

The series of consultations highlighted the relevance of polling techniques to the upcoming campaign. Participants agreed that Indonesian democracy was in transition and that responsiveness to community needs was increasingly important to election results.

Simultaneously, participants suggested that Indonesia’s political parties continue to search for relevant public policy responses to issues like rising fuel prices, governance and reform. While not offering any silver bullets, polling on issues not just personalities can strengthen voter engagement.

The International Unit will continue to assist Indonesia’s political parties in the lead-up to the 2009 presidential and legislative elections.