Asmorojati Anom Wahyu, Nuryana Zalik
Faculty of Law, Universitas Ahmad Dahlan, Indonesia.
Faculty of Islamic Studies, Universitas Ahmad Dahlan, Indonesia.
Heliyon. 2024 Feb 1;10(4):e25699. doi: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e25699. eCollection 2024 Feb 29.
The postponement of elections during the COVID-19 pandemic reflects a decline in global democracy. The policy of postponing elections due to health concerns, regulatory changes, and economic crises lacks empirical evidence. Several studies suggest that holding elections in countries that proceed with them does not significantly impact the spread of COVID-19. The acceleration of COVID-19 transmission is not limited to countries holding elections; it affects all countries, including those postponing them. Moreover, countries that continue to hold elections have turned this challenge into a COVID-19 mitigation strategy. This study aimed to analyze the findings of original research on election execution during the COVID-19 pandemic, focusing on campaign activities, regulatory changes, and election budgeting. It employed systematic literature review using 12 articles from the Web of Science and Scopus databases. The results show that conducting elections during the COVID-19 pandemic does not contribute to the spread of the virus. This is evident through the adoption of blended campaign strategies by the candidates. Election committees have adjusted voting procedures, including increasing the number of polling stations, tightly scheduling voter arrivals, and visiting red zone lockdown areas to prevent mass mobilization. The increase in election budgets during an economic crisis is not solely for the elections themselves but also for reinforcing health protocols. This research recommends a reconsideration of election postponements and advocates for conducting elections during the COVID-19 pandemic to uphold democracy. Furthermore, future research should explore the social and political implications, as well as the long-term consequences for democracy, which result from the implementation of soft campaign strategies and voting system modifications on a global scale, all in the pursuit of preserving democracy.
在新冠疫情期间推迟选举反映了全球民主的衰退。出于健康担忧、监管变化和经济危机而推迟选举的政策缺乏实证依据。多项研究表明，在举行选举的国家进行选举并不会对新冠病毒的传播产生显著影响。新冠病毒传播的加速并不局限于举行选举的国家；它影响所有国家，包括那些推迟选举的国家。此外，继续举行选举的国家已将这一挑战转化为一项新冠疫情缓解策略。本研究旨在分析关于新冠疫情期间选举执行情况的原创性研究结果，重点关注竞选活动、监管变化和选举预算。它采用系统文献综述，使用了来自科学网和Scopus数据库的12篇文章。结果表明，在新冠疫情期间举行选举不会导致病毒传播。这通过候选人采用混合竞选策略得以体现。选举委员会已调整投票程序，包括增加投票站数量、严格安排选民到场时间，以及走访红色区域封锁地区以防止大规模动员。经济危机期间选举预算的增加不仅是为了选举本身，也是为了加强卫生规程。本研究建议重新考虑选举推迟问题，并主张在新冠疫情期间举行选举以维护民主。此外，未来研究应探讨在全球范围内实施软性竞选策略和投票系统修改所带来的社会和政治影响，以及对民主的长期后果，所有这些都是为了维护民主。
