How price of sugar could swing the Indonesian election (and it’s bittersweet for Joko Widodo)

Keeping food prices low is critical for voter support ahead of April’s presidential election, where Jokowi, as the incumbent is popularly known, hopes to win a second term.

But the country is also home to a vocal contingent of sugar farmers who want to sell to the domestic market for higher prices.

Upsetting them could prove a sticky fault line on the campaign trail, likely to be exploited by Widodo’s challenger, Prabowo Subianto. The former general has announced big ideas to make Indonesia more prosperous, including achieving self-sufficiency in food and energy.

“It’s a balancing game,” said Siwage Dharma Negara, senior fellow at Singapore’s Institute of Southeast Asian Studies. “The government wants to accommodate the interests of both consumer and producer. The complexity is when politics come into play. Price inflation for staple foods is a key consideration in Widodo’s bid for re-election.”