Headline April 15, 2018/ '' 'INDONESIAN' STUDENTS INTEREST-VOTE' ''

'' 'INDONESIAN' STUDENTS 

INTEREST-VOTE' ''

PRESIDENT JOKO WIDODO : With holograms and ever lifting breakdancing this very great and internationally respected leader of Indonesia, battles for students-youth votes.

The World Students Society stops by, to pay respects, to the people of Indonesia, Grandparents, Parents, Students, Professors and Teachers and assure them of our very best wishes 

See Ya all, also, prepare for Great Global Elections and ''register'' on The World Students Society : wssciw.blogapot.com

''MAMA, JUST KILLED A MAN,'' sings Indonesian President Joko Widodo during a recent ride in a local YouTube celebrity's car while Queen's Bohemian Rhapsody plays in the background.

The video which also shows Widodo dressed in a red- zip-up jacket and jeans chatting about family life and the pressures of running the world's third largest democracy, was the brainchild of a backroom team has become a vital part of his his campaign for re-election on April 17.

The team, comprised mainly of people in their 20s, has a sleek, high-rise office in central Jakarta. On a recent visit, Reuters saw the team's data of social media activity on the Indonesian presidential election displayed on LED screen covering one wall of a conference room.

Widodo's aides say the team uses the data to determine the pop-culture references that the president will make in his next speech - he's done ''Games of Thrones'' and the ''Avengers'' already - or the sneakers he might aware to an event to appeal to young voters. Widodo's sons also sometimes advise him on outfits or speeches, according to one senior campaign aide.

MILLENNIALS - those aged 17-35 account for over one-third of Indonesia's 195 million voters and both Widodo and his challenger, former general Prabowo Subianto, have ramped up efforts to appeal to them.

''Just because of sheer size of that voter base, the millennials will play an important role in deciding the direction of the election,'' said Djayadi Hanan of pollster Saiful Mujani Research & Consulting.

Most opinion polls show Widodo, 57, holding a double-digit lead over his opponent. A recent survey by pollster Roy Morgan showed around 60 percent of young voters favouring Widodo, but both campaign say that wooing the country's largely apolitical youth is a challenge.

A former furniture-maker who grew up in a riverside slum and is the first national leader to come from outside the political and military elite. Widodo's everyman image resonated in 2014 with voters tired of old guard.

But since taking office, aides say, young supporters ''no longer recognised'' the president and he was advised to project a more relaxed image.

''Because he has had to become more stately, that 'village boy' narrative was missing this time,'' said the senior campaign aide, who declined to be identified.

That's when the backroom team came in.........
''We're able to see in real-time what does well or what people react negatively to...............
We were very blunt in conveying that to the president,'' the aide said, adding that Widodo gets a summary of the social media data almost daily.

Desperate Promises : Nevertheless many young voters want policy pledges to address job-creation  and youth unemployment, not campaign gimmicks.

Unemployment, at about 5 percent, is one of the highest in Southeast Asia, and many of those without jobs are graduates of vocational schools.

In what is widely seen as an attempt to win votes, Widodo last month promised cash-benefits to    graduates from poor families and the unemployed, but did not offer details.

Critics questioned the feasibility of such a plan, citing an already strained national budget.

Prabowo's running mate, businessman and amateur marathon runner Sandiago Uno, was chosen in part for his massive appeal both online and and offline with young and female voters.

As a keynote speaker at a recent event for young entrepreneurs, Uno 49, joined a group of breakdancers on stage before kicking football's into a crowd of  university students.

Uno's popularity and extensive campaigning across the country has has helped boost Prabowo's  electability, aides say.

Prabowo and his running mate have promised ''entrepreneurial training'' for graduates.

''Our biggest concern is how to get a job after we graduate and who is the leader who can give us that,'' said Haliza Aulia Madina, a 19-year old student studying Arabic  in the city of  Bandung, who supports Prabowo.

With respectful dedication to the Students, Professors and Teachers of the world. See Ya all prepare for Great Global Elections and ''register'' on : wssciw.blogspot.com - The World Students Society and............ Twitter - !E-WOW! - the Ecosystem 2011:


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SAM Daily Times - the Voice of the Voiceless