Indonesian politics in 2013: the emergence of new leadership?

In a new article in the Bulletin of Indonesian Economic Studies journal, Lowy Institute Research Fellow Dr Dave McRae surveys Indonesian politics in 2013, focusing on the impact of the rise of Joko Widodo (Jokowi) from small-town mayor to presidential frontrunner. The article examine's whether Jokowi's rise has opened the way for alternative candidates at local level, or changed the calculations of national level political parties for the 2014 presidential elections. The article concludes by examing whether a new president could tackle some of the entrenched defects of Indonesian democracy, focusing on corrupt law enforcement, the military and the rule of law, and violent religious intolerance. The article can be accessed via this link.