When The Blank Box Becomes A Symbol Of Public Dissatisfaction

In the regional elections in Pangkalpinang City, Kotak Blank defeated the single candidate. (IST)

The choice of society fell into an empty box in the Pilkada of Pangkalpinang and Bangka 2024. This is not just a technical victory, but a strong protest against democracy that has lost its meaning. The message is firm: the people refuse to be forced to vote in a system that does not provide an alternative.

This incident made history again. For the second time, the empty box won a landslide against a single candidate. Based on real count data, the empty box won 57.3 percent of the votes in Pangkalpinang and 54.1 percent in Bangka. Previously, the 2018 Makassar Pilwakot also witnessed a victory in an empty box with 53.23 percent of the votes. This is not a coincidence. The people chose to refuse, not because they were satisfied, but because they were disappointed.

Political observer of Al-Azhar University Indonesia, Andriadi Achmad, as published in VOI, assesses that the victory of the empty box reflects the failure of political parties. The party is unable to provide candidates representing public aspirations. Forced democracy like this only harms the people.

Agus Setiawan, an empty box volunteer in Pangkalpinang, confirmed the statement. According to him, the victory of the empty box is "the message of the people who do not want to be forced to accept candidates without choice." This statement underscores the importance of real competition in democracy, not just procedural formality.

The General Election Commission (KPU) of the Republic of Indonesia has rescheduled the re-cash for Pangkalpinang and Bangka no later than September 2025. However, is this enough? If the Pilkada mechanism is not changed to involve the community more actively, the same protests may be repeated. People don't want to just be spectators in democracy.

The victory of the empty box is not only criticism of single candidates, but also hard slaps for the political elite. Democracy should not only be a formality stage. He must provide a real space for the people to voice their aspirations. Dewi Anggraini's writing, Head of the Andalas University's School of Political Sciences Study Program at Unand.ac.id, said that the victory of the empty box was a reflection of uncoupled democracy. However, this is also a transitional phase towards more substantial democracy. People are getting more critical. This message cannot be ignored.

When people are given choices without alternative, they create a way to elegantly refuse through ballot boxes. This phenomenon confirms that forced democracy or just formality is no longer enough. The empty box is a symbol of resistance to a system that ignores people's aspirations. Political elites must immediately improve.

What to do? First, political parties must seriously carry cadres who are competent and have integrity. Second, the selection process for candidates must be transparent and involve the community. Third, the KPU must guarantee the implementation of Pilkada which is open and free from anyone's influence. Indeed, it seems normative, but if this step is not taken, the empty box will continue to be a frightening choice for single candidates.

Democracy should be a space where the voices of the people, no matter how small, are heard and appreciated. The empty box is a symbol that the people no longer want to compromise with systems that marginalize their aspirations.