Indonesia Weighs New Presidential Nomination Rules After Court Scraps Threshold

JAKARTA, STUPA NEWS — A proposal requiring presidential and vice-presidential candidates to secure the backing of at least two parliamentary factions has emerged as Indonesia considers a new framework for presidential nominations, after the Constitutional Court scrapped the country's presidential nomination threshold.

NasDem Party Chairman Surya Paloh said on Saturday the proposal was worth considering as lawmakers prepare to review electoral regulations ahead of the next presidential election.

“I have heard a clear proposal that the model for supporting presidential candidates could be based on the backing of at least two factions,” Paloh told reporters in Jakarta, according to remarks cited on Sunday.

Paloh said such a requirement could still provide candidates with a substantial political base, particularly if the parliamentary threshold for parties to gain seats in the legislature were set at a relatively high level.

“In my view, that would be good. Essentially, two factions with a high parliamentary threshold would also represent a significant number of votes,” he said.

Paloh said different proposals for presidential nominations should be discussed openly as lawmakers consider amendments to Indonesia's election laws.

He said the process should not be designed to accommodate only one political view, given the competing interests and perspectives within Indonesia's political system.

“How can we only respect our own opinion? If we only value our own opinion, we will damage this country,” Paloh said.

Indonesia's Constitutional Court ruled on Jan. 2, 2025 that Article 222 of the 2017 Election Law, which established the presidential nomination threshold, was unconstitutional and no longer legally binding.

The provision had required a political party or coalition of parties to hold at least 20% of seats in the House of Representatives or secure 25% of the national popular vote to nominate a presidential and vice-presidential ticket.

The court's ruling removed the legal basis for the presidential threshold and opened the way for lawmakers to design a new nomination mechanism.

The proposal requiring support from at least two parliamentary factions is one of the options now being discussed, but it remains a political proposal and has not become law.

The eventual rules will determine how political parties participating in Indonesia's next election can exercise their constitutional right to nominate presidential and vice-presidential candidates.

Paloh said differences of opinion should be accommodated during the legislative process so that any new electoral framework can emerge from broader political agreement. (Janne Sinten)