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Ruling coalition upbeat about keeping presidential threshold
A couple of hours before voting commenced Thursday on the election bill at the House of Representatives, the ruling coalition was more optimistic that the presidential nomination threshold would remain unchanged, as the National Mandate Party (PAN) and the National Awakening Party (PKB) had softened their stances.
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Tough talks: Home Minister Tjahjo Kumolo (right) accompanied by Law and Human Rights Minister Yasonna Laoly (left) attend a meeting of the special committee on the election bill at the legislative complex in Senayan, Central Jakarta, on July 13. (Antara/M.Agung Rajasa)
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couple of hours before voting commenced Thursday on the election bill at the House of Representatives, the ruling coalition was more optimistic that the presidential nomination threshold would be retained, as the National Mandate Party (PAN) and the National Awakening Party (PKB) had softened their stances.
The threshold is the benchmark for political parties to field presidential candidates in the 2019 general elections.
Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) faction secretary Bambang Wuryanto said the coalition parties had consolidated their stance on the presidential nomination threshold, the most heavily debated point among the five contentious provisions in the bill.
“The PKB will likely support Package A. But PAN still needs [persuading]," said Bambang.
PAN, he added, was willing to support to the current presidential nomination threshold of 20 percent of House seats or 25 percent of the popular vote, but the party also wanted to retain the Hare Quota, the quota-based votes-to-seats conversion method which was being offered in Packages B and E.
The PDI-P, along with four other parties of the government coalition, endorses Package A, which includes the Sainte-Lague conversion method.
If both PAN and PKB change their stances, the ruling coalition will win big in the voting process, as it faces only three opposition factions: Gerindra, the Democratic Party and the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS).
As of Thursday afternoon, lobbying was still ongoing although the plenary session had kicked off. (ebf)
