Jakarta is still a barometer of national politics, political parties prepare popular figures for regional elections

Those three names were chosen not only based on their capacity but also their popularity in Jakarta. Sohibul Iman, for example, has served as an DPR member from the electoral district (Dapil) of DKI Jakarta II. Mardani Ali Sera is also a current DPR member as well as a candidate for DPR from the electoral district of DKI Jakarta I with the highest vote count in his electoral district in the 2024 elections. Meanwhile, Khoirudin currently serves as the Vice Chairman of DPRD DKI Jakarta.

Hidayat said, Jakarta Pilkada was crucial because PKS had a strong mass base in the area. In the 2024 elections, PKS won the legislative member elections (Pileg) in DKI at both the DPR and DPRD levels. In the 2017 DKI Jakarta Pilkada, PKS was also one of the supporters of Anies Baswedan-Sandiaga Uno and succeeded in winning the pair.

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"The victory of PKS in Jakarta is a trust that we must maintain and follow up on, namely by winning the Jakarta Gubernatorial Election 2024," Hidayat said when contacted from Jakarta on Thursday (18/4/2024).

However, until now, PKS has not explored communication with other political parties to form a coalition in facing the Jakarta gubernatorial election. One of the supporters of Anies Baswedan-Muhaimin Iskandar in the 2024 Presidential Election is still focusing on resolving the dispute over the presidential election results at the Constitutional Court. Therefore, PKS does not want to discuss Anies Baswedan's candidacy in the local elections, as done by the Nasdem Party.

"We see that it's not time yet to discuss Mr. Anies as a candidate for governor because we are still fighting for Mr. Anies in the 2024 presidential election," said Hidayat.

Previously, the elite of the Nasdem Party, supporters of Anies-Muhaimin aside from PKS, stated that they would provide a "red carpet" if Anies wanted to run again in the Jakarta regional elections. Nasdem is also said to be preparing a member of the Nasdem faction in the DPR, Ahmad Sahroni, to be proposed as a candidate for governor of Jakarta. In addition to PKS and Nasdem, the Golkar Party also discussed nominating former West Java Governor Ridwan Kamil to compete in Jakarta.

Also read: Simulation of Jakarta DPRD Seats, Observing Governor Contestation

Hundreds of regional leaders and deputy regional leaders from the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) stayed overnight at the Party School, Lenteng Agung, South Jakarta. They were present to participate in the National Coordination Meeting (Rakornas) of PDI-P as part of party consolidation in facing the 2024 Election on Friday (17/6/2022).

The Secretary General of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), Hasto Kristiyanto, said that they have also started discussions. A number of regional head candidates, including those who will be supported in the Jakarta Regional Elections, have been prepared through the party's educational mechanism.

"We now add an emphasis (criteria) on the importance of compliance with the constitution, manners, and polite words and actions. And leaders must not lie," he said.

Still playing an important role

No less than other political parties, the Gerindra Party has also prepared figures to be proposed as candidates for governor of Jakarta. Gerindra Secretary General Ahmad Muzani said that the figure in question was a young figure who was seen as being able to provide new enthusiasm to leadership at the provincial level. "(We prioritize) someone who is fresh (to become a candidate for governor of Jakarta)," he said.

According to Muzani, several considerations are needed to determine the proper candidate for Jakarta's governor. So far, in addition to popular young figures, Gerindra is also considering choosing someone who has an economic vision and is flexible in approaching all groups. Not only that, the figure in question also needs to have a high tolerance towards all groups and professions.

Also read: Billboards for Ridwan Kamil, Ahmad Sahroni, and Speculation on Candidates for Governor of Jakarta

Gerindra Party Secretary General Ahmad Muzani at the Parliament Complex, Jakarta, Tuesday (3/10/2023).

Because even though the capital city will be moving, Jakarta is still believed to play an important role in both national politics and economy dynamics. Therefore, its future leader must also have national level capacity. "This region will still be very important, because although (the capital city) will no longer be located in Jakarta from a governmental perspective, Jakarta will still be a center of economic activity," he said.

Aside from preparing candidates, Muzani continued, Gerindra is also striving to rebuild coalitions with several parties that similarly support Prabowo Subianto-Gibran Rakabuming Raka for the 2024 presidential election. In the 2024 presidential election, Gerindra will form a coalition, among others, with Golkar Party, Democratic Party, National Mandate Party (PAN), and Solidarity Party of Indonesia (PSI). In addition, there are also the Crescent Star Party, Gelora Party, and Garuda Party.

Muzani acknowledges that Gerindra prioritizes to form a coalition with members of KIM in local elections. However, it's not an easy task to implement. "Because, in some provinces and other regions, there are local political interests that are not easy to reconcile, that is what we are exploring, quite a lot, and the complications are quite complex," he said.

In order to nominate a gubernatorial candidate in the Jakarta Regional Election, political parties must form a coalition. This is because according to Law Number 10 of 2016 concerning Regional Elections, a political party or coalition of political parties must have 20 percent of the seats in the Jakarta Regional Council or 25 percent of the votes in the election. PKS, as the political party with the highest number of votes in DKI Jakarta, is estimated to only receive 17 percent of the seats in the Jakarta Regional Council.

Previously, the Chairman of the Golkar Party, Airlangga Hartarto, announced that his party has prepared three names for the Jakarta Governor Election. These three names are not just any figures. They are former West Java Governor Ridwan Kamil, former Regent of Tangerang Ahmed Zaki Iskandar, and Golkar Deputy Chairman Erwin Aksa.

Not yet replaced

Head of the Department of Politics and Social Change at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), Arya Fernandes, stated that Jakarta will still have a strategic political role even though it will no longer be the capital city. This is because, if we look at the recent periods, the Governor of DKI Jakarta generally continues as a candidate in the presidential election. For example, Joko Widodo ran in the 2014 presidential election after winning the 2012 Jakarta gubernatorial election, and the same goes for Anies.

"The trend is what influences why recently the circulated names for Jakarta's governor candidates are popular figures at the national level, such as Ridwan Kamil, Tri Rismaharini," said Arya.

Also read: Regarding Competition with Ridwan Kamil, Zaki Iskandar: I Was Given a Decree on the Mandate of DKI Governor Candidate from Golkar

Although it will no longer be the capital in the future, Jakarta remains a special region with a great economic management capacity. It is also projected to become a global city. Looking at trends in other countries, leaders of major cities have a significant chance of becoming national leaders.

"Jakarta will also remain the national political barometer because political parties are still based in Jakarta, national elites still exist in Jakarta, as well as important institutions such as the mass media. Therefore, even in the next 10 or 20 years, Jakarta's political position will still not be replaced," said Arya.