Indonesian Parliament Agrees to New Electoral Rules, Temporarily Stopping Unrest

Peace has been restored in Jakarta after Indonesia’s parliament authorized the country’s electoral regulator to implement new rules in accordance with the two Constitutional Court decisions.

Last week, the parliament had tried to delay the approval of changes to the election regulations, leading to protesters trying to breach the legislature’s gates, resulting in widespread unrest across the country, met with police deploying tear gas and water cannons.

The controversy revolves around the upcoming regional elections in November. The House of Representatives, known as the Baleg, had proposed amendments to election regulations that favored President Joko Widodo and his allies, particularly his youngest son Kaesang Pangarep, who would have been ineligible to run for the deputy governor position of Central Java under the existing regulations.

Just a day after the Constitutional Court dismissed a plea to alter the minimum age for candidates, a parliamentary committee drafted legislation that would override that decision.

There was already discontent over a 2023 Court ruling, chaired by the president’s brother-in-law at the time, which modified another set of age limit rules, allowing his eldest son Gibran Rakabuming Raka to potentially become vice president in October.

Threshold Lowered to Give Smaller Parties Opportunity

Another key change in the recent Court ruling, opposed by Widodo’s allies, is a significant reduction in the threshold for any political party or coalition wanting to nominate candidates for provincial and regional leadership roles.

Previously, a party needed to secure 25% of the popular vote or 20% of the seats in the local legislature. However, the ruling eliminated the incumbent member requirement and lowered it to between 6.5 and 10% based on the number of registered voters in the respective areas.

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This change will allow minor parties not aligned with Widodo and his preferred successor, incoming President Prabowo Subianto, to nominate candidates and potentially gain power in regions currently under the control of the Widodo-aligned Onward Indonesia Coalition (KIM) party.

The Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), which previously supported Widodo and his allies, is expected to mount a strong campaign against KIM’s dominance now that the restrictions have been lifted.

Opposition to Parliament’s attempt to circumvent the Constitutional Court rose last weekend, with approximately half a million posts featuring a blue “emergency warning” image and the hashtag #KawalPutusanMK.

Following the public outcry, lawmakers announced that the Court’s decision would be respected.

Nominations for the regional positions commenced on Aug. 27 and will conclude on Aug. 29.