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resident Joko '€œJokowi'€ Widodo will consult other state institutions regarding the best way to anticipate uncontested elections in seven regions where only one ticket has registered its candidacy.

Jokowi invited a number of relevant ministers, as well as General Elections Commission (KPU) chairman Husni Kamil Manik and Election Organization Ethics Council (DKPP) chairman Jimly Asshiddiqie, to a meeting on Tuesday, but no decision was reached. Some have suggested that the President could issue a government regulation in lieu of law (Perppu) to amend the current Regional Elections Law.

'€œNo decision has been made. The President said that a Perppu would be a final resort,'€ Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Affairs Minister Tedjo Edhy Purdijatno said during a press conference after the meeting at the Presidential Office.

The KPU has said it will postpone until 2017 elections in seven regions after registration closed on Monday, while Home Minister Tjahjo Kumolo recently revealed that his office was still looking at several options to deal with regional elections with fewer than two registered tickets.

The President was set to invite other institutions, including the House of Representatives, the People'€™s Consultative Assembly (MPR) and representatives from political parties, to a meeting on Wednesday at the Bogor Palace, Tedjo said.

Earlier that day, Jokowi said discussion was needed before he could decide whether to issue a Perppu.

Tjahjo, however, refused to confirm whether his office was preparing a draft of a Perppu.

'€œIt may or may not come to a Perppu,'€ he said before the meeting. '€œWhat is important is to ensure the political rights of the existing [sole] candidate pairs are not ignored.'€

Tjahjo further argued that extending the registration deadline would be useless.

Jimly, meanwhile, said a Perppu was the best option for the government, predicting that the House would support the move and enact the Perppu into law.

The KPU, Husni said, had explained its decision to postpone the seven local elections, adding that the options of issuing a Perppu or revising a KPU regulation related to election postponement were not on the table on Tuesday.

The government could decide, Husni went on, to open a new registration window, but the KPU could not itself legally extend the period.

Separately, deputy House speaker Fachri Hamzah confirmed that Jokowi had invited House leaders to a consultation meeting on Wednesday at the Bogor Palace, West Java, to discuss a number of matters, including the regional elections.

'€œ[On Wednesday] there will be a consultation meeting with President Jokowi to discuss matters pertaining to the annual State Address, the Financial Note speech and potentially the regional elections too,'€ Fachri said at the House complex on Tuesday, as quoted by Antara news agency.

The Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) politician said a Perppu was not the ideal option, in that it would provide only a temporary solution to the problem.

The Regional Elections Law itself, Fachir said, had a weak legal standing. '€œThe law is flawed '€” that'€™s why problem after problem continues to emerge,'€ he said.