The Indonesian presidential election will be held on July 8 with the newly elected president and vice president taking office in October, the information officer at the Indonesian Consulate General in Jeddah, Dharma Kirty, said on Monday. With 82,713 Indonesians registered to vote in the western region of the Kingdom, the Indonesian Consul General, Gatot Abdullah Mansyur, hopes that Saudi sponsors will allow their Indonesian employees to cast their ballot in this year's election. Zem Khallis Bustami, head of the election committee, said that all Indonesians who have extended their passports, or who have reported their arrival in the Kingdom to the Indonesian consulate from 2004 until the end of August 2008 are eligible to vote because they are automatically registered to cast ballot. He also said all preparations for the election have been completed, and that the election committee has formed four teams to provide voting stations in Jeddah at the Indonesian Consulate, the Consul General's residence, the Jeddah Indonesian School and the Indonesian Haj Mission Office in Makkah. All of these stations will be open from 10 A.M. until 10 P.M. Indonesians living outside Jeddah can cast their ballots through post before July 8, he added.
