27 poll workers died throughout Indonesia's 2024 election

Jakarta, Feb 17 (IANS) A total of 27 poll workers died throughout Indonesia's 2024 general election, according to the health ministry on Friday.

The ministry's spokesperson Siti Nadia Tarmizi said they died before, during, and after the vote, based on reports the ministry received from February 10 to 15.

"The main cause is heart attacks, the number of cases reached nine," stated Tarmizi.

Other causes are vehicle accidents (4), septic shock (2), acute respiratory distress syndrome (1), and hypertension (1), while 10 are in the process of being confirmed, Xinhua news agency reported.

Central Java is the province with the highest number of deaths of poll workers, seven cases, followed by East Java and West Java with five cases each.

Indonesia's general elections on Wednesday involved more than 204 million voters through 823,220 stations with more than 5.74 million poll workers, according to the General Election Commission.

Cases of poll workers who died in the 2019 general elections reached 894. To prevent deaths, the government has implemented health screening and requires a maximum age limit of 55 for poll workers.