PD secures the majority of Jakarta House seats

More than one third or nine of the 21 House of Representatives seats contested in Jakarta will officially go to Democratic Party candidates, as the General Election Commission (KPU) announced late Wednesday the House’s 560 seats distribution in the country’s all electoral districts.

The Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) secured four seats while the Golkar Party and the Indonesia Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) both got three. The United Development Party (PPP) and the Great Indonesia Movement Party (Gerindra) secured the remaining two seats.

Although the KPU has yet to officially announce the names of all House members, some candidates who are almost certain to get the seats are former deputy chief of the National Police Adang Daradjatun, former Jakarta deputy governor Harun al-Rasyid, the Democratic Party secretary general Marzuki Alie and PDI-P legislator Effendi Simbolon.

Harun, currently a Regional Representative Council (DPD) member, said he was glad because he won a tight competition during the general elections.

Running in the Jakarta-3 electoral district with Gerindra, he successfully beat some prominent politicians, like the People’s Conscience Party’s Djafar Badjeber and Golkar’s Anton Lesiangi.

“I’m already feeling secured and now waiting the KPU to officially announce my victory,” Harun told The Jakarta Post Thursday.

Rookie politicians are also on the list of the winning candidates.

PPP Jakarta chapter campaign manager Yulte Marjon said the party’s candidate Okky Asokawati, a model turned politician, had successfully secured the party’s only seat from Jakarta.

“Seeing the seats distribution method used by the KPU, we found that only Ibu Okky won here,” Yulte said.

Okky, who competed in Jakarta-2 electoral district, surprisingly defeated a number of experienced politicians, including the National Mandate Party’s Abdillah Thoha and Ade Daud Nasution and PKS’s Nursanita Nasution, who are all incumbent legislators. (hwa)