When Indonesians elect their MPs today, followed three months later by a new president on July 9, their decisions will have a strong impact on the wider region. Given Indonesia’s pivotal position as Southeast Asia’s biggest economy, this is to be expected.

But understanding the full implications of their electoral choices will not be easy as there are two “known unknowns” in the country’s latest power transition. The first concerns the new parliament. The second, the new president. Unless the picture becomes clearer towards the end of the year, a new government clouded by these twin ambiguities could mean quite a testy time ahead for the region.

… Yang Razali Kassim is a senior fellow with Singapore’s S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS), Nanyang Technological University.