W

est Java, which is often regarded as a religiously conservative province, will host 17 elections for a new governor, mayors and regents this year.

All four pairs running for the governorship are men, while only nine out of 104 candidates running for leadership are women.

Nina Yuningsih, head of General Elections Commission’s (KPU) West Java chapter lamented the lack of women participating in local elections, to be held in June at the same time 171 other areas are slated to elect new leaders.

“The presence of female candidates will offer alternatives for voters. Politics tends to be masculine,” Nina told The Jakarta Post.

West Java reflects the country’s electoral propensity when it comes to gender preference for leaders. KPU data shows that only 101 out of 1,140 candidates running in elections nationwide, or 8.85 percent of the total candidates, are women.

Still, the figure is an increase from the 2015 and 2017 regional elections, when a respective 7.47 percent and 7.17 percent of all candidates were women.

North Sumatra, home of the patriarchal Batak ethnic group and where more than half of the total 10.5 million voters are women, has no female candidates this year. Indonesia’s second-largest province, East Java, only has one female ticket in the governor’s race, former social minister Khofifah Indar Parawansa.

The third-largest province of Central Java only has Ida Fauziah as a vice governor candidate.

Meanwhile, in Karanganyar, a coalition of the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) and the Gerindra Party chose Ida Retno Wahyuningsih to run for deputy regent, citing the progress the regency has made under the guidance of a female leader in the past.

In West Nusa Tenggara (NTB), Sitti Rohmi Djalila, is the only female candidate to run in the province’s gubernatorial election, in which she is contesting the vice governor’s seat. In Parigi Moutong, Central Sulawesi, Rahmawati and Yufni Bungkundapu were initially back-up candidates and had their nominations approved at the last minute.

Patriarchal traditions and religious conservatism are often considered the biggest obstacles for woman politicians who wish to run for a region’s top post.

“Indonesian politics is not women-friendly,” said Antik Bintari, a lecturer at the Padjadjaran University’s school of social and political science.

She pointed out that women candidates were often mobilized as complementary vote-getters.

Titi Anggraini from the elections watchdog Perludem shared the same sentiment, saying that despite modernization, patriarchal expectations remain a hindrance for women.

“Women must work twice as hard as men. Women also have to prove that they are worthy candidates — that they are professional, talented and clean,” she said. “But on the other hand, they are also expected to [...] take care of the household and so on.”

She added that societal expectations also require women to ask their husbands for permission before making decisions.

Yet another obstacle to the advancement of women in politics, she further said, was a lack of financial support.

“Women do have access to financial support, though it is limited. Most woman candidates gain such support from their family or spouses,” she said.

Karolin Margret Natasa, a 35-year-old gubernatorial candidate in West Kalimantan, is arguably the strongest contender in her region, largely on account of her experience as a legislator and Landak regent. She is also the daughter of former West Kalimantan governor Cornelis MH.

Lena Maryana Mukti, chairwoman of the Australia-Indonesia Partnership for Gender Equality and Woman Empowerment (MAMPU), said the reliance of female politicians on familial connections was inevitable.

“What we must ensure is that those women are qualified,” she said.

— Severianus Endi, Panca Nugraha Apriadi Gunawan, Ruslan Sangadji, Andi Hajramurni, Aman Rochman, Djemi Amnifu and Ganug Nugroho Adi, also contributed from Pontianak, Mataram, Medan, Palu, Makassar, Malang, East Nusa Tenggara and Karanganyar.