June 10, 2024
JAKARTA – The nationalist Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) is in talks with the Islam-based National Awakening Party (PKB) about the possibility of joining forces to support opposition figure Anies Baswedan for reelection as governor of Jakarta later this year. But for such a pairing to work, analysts say, the two parties must set aside their ideological differences with Anies supporters to stand against the candidate championed by the pro-government coalition backed by President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo.
Both parties ostensibly support the Jokowi administration, but they and the outgoing President were on opposing sides of the three-way February presidential race, which Anies ran in and lost to president-elect Prabowo Subianto. The PDI-P had nominated presidential candidate Ganjar Pranowo while the PKB had backed party member Muhaimin Iskandar for the vice presidency as Anies’ running mate.
PDI-P executive Ahmad Basarah said his party had been engaging in preliminary discussions with the PKB about the possibility of supporting an Anies reelection bid in November.
“Earlier in our informal discussion, I told Muhaimin that we may forge political cooperation in the Jakarta election,” Basarah told reporters on Saturday.
But he also said that even if the PKB nominated Anies and agreed to work with the PDI-P, the two parties would still need to discuss how the partnership would work, including who Anies’ running mate would be, signaling that the PDI-P might offer a name.
Basarah’s remarks came after PKB deputy chair Jazilul Fawaid claimed last week that Anies had been seeking the PKB’s nomination.
Talk of the PDI-P and Anies joining forces for the upcoming Jakarta gubernatorial election gained traction after party heir apparent Puan Maharani said last week that Anies was a “compelling” candidate for Jakarta governor as the party was seeking a “more realistic” approach in the Jakarta race.
Anies appeared to welcome Puan’s sign of support, saying on Friday that running with the backing of the PDI-P was an “appealing idea”.
Read also: PDI-P considering Anies, Ahok as Jakarta gubernatorial candidates
Anies has not announced whether he will run for governor this year, but he suggested he was in the midst of talks with political parties and that he might soon decide whether to announce his reelection bid.
“These days, I am completing talks with many parties to come to a conclusion. Hopefully, we will get there soon,” he said.
Anies is on the PDI-P’s official list of prospective candidates, along with senior party politician and Cabinet Secretary Pramono Anung and former Indonesian Military (TNI) chief Andika Perkasa, according to PDI-P secretary-general Hasto Kristiyanto.
Anies, the United States-educated governor of Jakarta from 2017 to 2022, is not a member of any political party.
‘More talks’
Responding to the potential alliance with the PDI-P, Jazilul of the PKB said his party and any prospective partners would need to agree on a running mate for Anies before announcing an electoral coalition.
“Who will run alongside Anies? The PKB also has a list [of prospective candidates],” Jazilul said. “[We need to talk about] the coalition’s composition, who the running mate will be. It’s not enough to just name a candidate.”
Read also: Anies ‘seriously considers’ running for reelection in Jakarta
Another PKB executive, Daniel Johan, suggested that it was only a matter of time before the party announced its support for Anies and claimed that PKB would roll out a “red carpet” for the former Jakarta governor should he formally announce his intention to run in the November race.
“[The PKB and Anies] fought together [in the February presidential election]. So the matters regarding announcing [the PKB’s support for Anies] are just things that are trivial or very technical,” he said.
“The important thing is that we share the same vision. Now let’s just wait for the surprise.”
‘An anomaly’
While having the PDI-P and PKB join forces with Anies may look good on paper, the reality could be more challenging, given the ideological differences between the two parties and Anies’ traditional supporter base, said researcher Nicky Fahrizal of the Jakarta-based Centre for Strategic Studies (CSIS).
Anies clinched the Jakarta governorship in a highly divisive 2017 election in which he was accused of riding a wave of Islamic conservatism to beat incumbent Basuki “Ahok” Tjahja Purnama, a Christian of Chinese descent who ran on the PDI-P’s ticket.
The PKB, which has close ties with the nation’s largest Muslim group, the politically moderate Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), lent its support to Ahok in the runoff after its own candidate lost in the first round.
“Anies is more popular among conservative groups in Jakarta. If the alliance behind his bid includes the PDI-P and PKB, this could potentially lead to an anomaly. The big question would be whether Anies can repeat the same victory in 2017,” Nicky said.
Anies, Nicky said, could see tough competition if he faced a challenger supported by outgoing President Jokowi and president-elect Prabowo Subianto, whose popularity and power could swing the Jakarta election.
“The stakes are high because the gubernatorial election in Jakarta, despite the city losing its status as the capital city, will determine who will help realize the [president-elect’s programs] through the local administration,” Nicky said.
Read also: Dismay as top court revises regional election rules
Jakarta is to remain an autonomous province within an expansive urban agglomeration are that serves as the country’s economic epicenter after the seat of government moves to Nusantara later this year.
There is also a chance that Anies will face off against former West Java governor Ridwan Kamil of the Golkar Party, a member of Prabowo’s coalition, or Kaesang Pangarep, the eldest son of Jokowi.
Jakarta is currently led by acting governor Heru Budi Hartono, a Jokowi loyalist who is not a member of any political party.