September 26, 2024
JAKARTA – Wednesday marks the start of the campaign season for the single-day regional head elections slated for Nov. 27 nationwide. Celebrities across generations, from actors to comedians, will join political parties and their candidates on the campaign trail, hoping to boost their chances of winning office.
In Jakarta, for example, the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) has enlisted comedian Lies Hartono, popularly known as Cak Lontong, as campaign manager for the in-house candidate pair of former cabinet secretary Pramono Anung and Rano Karno in the gubernatorial race. Rano himself is an actor-cum-politician, who is known for his leading role in the popular 1990s soap opera Si Doel Anak Sekolahan, the portrayal of a Betawi family.
In neighboring Banten, the PDI-P’s rival Gerindra Party has appointed actor-cum-businessman Raffi Ahmad as campaign manager for gubernatorial candidate pair Andra Soni-Achmad Dimyati Natakusumah.
Even before registering their bids with the General Elections Commission (KPU) on Aug. 28, many candidates trotted out names of celebrities and public figures to appeal to voters. Scores of public figures are also running in many regencies on the tickets of political parties.
Several TV personalities and a comedian even emerged as the top-of-mind prospective candidates in provinces across Java in various surveys held before candidates placed their bids.
It is therefore logical for candidates to enlist the help of vote-getter celebrities, particularly given the high number of undecided voters or those who might still change their minds after seeing the campaigns, regardless of their current preferences.
Early public opinion surveys in highly populated or key battleground provinces, such as Jakarta, Central Java and North Sumatra also show that a majority of respondents prefer to make their final choice days or even hours before voting day.
The likability of candidates and recognition among voters still matters, according to these surveys. And the correlation between these factors follows a simple logic: People won’t choose a candidate if they do not know them. But being well known does not necessarily translate into votes, if they are not likable.
So there is a chance for candidates to take the lead by boosting popularity through celebrity endorsements.
Such endorsements are not new. It has become a fixture on the campaign trail in past elections, with political parties hiring vote-getter artists and musicians because they are struggling with the absence of a reliable recruitment and regeneration system.
Political scientists are still debating how much celebrity influences matter in elections, but we have reasons to worry about political parties exploiting the charm of celebrities and public figures.
It is an instant effort to win a chunk of votes as political parties fail to find their own competitive members to contest elections with strong campaign platforms to address problems in their respective regions.
While celebrities can help convince voters to go to polling stations and exercise their right to vote, their influence can sway public support, particularly if voters don’t know much about the candidates.
In order to develop a healthy democracy, political parties and their candidates should prioritize offering substantive political education and informing voters of their policies and programs rather than campaign gimmicks.
Fortunately, there are still voters who are eager to have discussions about ideas and critically evaluate the qualities and policies of candidates.
A survey in Central Java found that while roadside banners and billboards, the news on TV and a visit by campaigners were proven to be the most helpful sources of information about candidates, a face-to-face, frank discussion between candidates and voters was seen as the most trustworthy method to build trust among them.
Political parties can’t continue to reach for star power to win votes, rather they need to find a solution to their regeneration woes.