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KPU skips overhaul of electoral districts
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Making the right choice: A man cycles past a board listing Malang Council candidates in front of the election commission’s offices in Malang, East Java, in this file photo from 2019. (JP/Aman Rochman)
T
he decision by the General Elections Commission (KPU) not to redraw the electoral districts for the 2024 general elections other than in four new provinces in Papua despite mounting calls for a thorough overhaul has further raised questions over the commission’s independence.
The Constitutional Court in December last year ruled to give the KPU the sole authority to arrange electoral districts through KPU regulations (PKPUs) after a group of election activists filed a petition to challenge the General Elections Law, which said otherwise.
The process must uphold the proportionality principle, among others, between the allocation of seats and the populations in the provinces, the ruling stated.
The ruling is a departure from a provision in the election law, which stipulated that such authority fell under the scope of lawmakers at the House of Representatives. This has garnered praise from election watchdogs, which described it as a “remarkable ruling” that could minimize conflict of interests among lawmakers who came from political parties participating in the race.
The KPU however has drawn criticism after it decided not to redraw the whole electoral districts in its draft of the regulation, aside from including a new set of electoral districts and the numbers of legislative seats in four new provinces in Papua Island up for grabs in 2024. The regulation is expected to be issued by Thursday.
Read also: Policymakers consider Perppu to redraw Papua's electoral districts
The planned regulation got the nod from lawmakers of House Commission II, overseeing home affairs and the government, during a meeting on Tuesday. This came weeks after lawmakers across factions asked the election organizer to not redraw the electoral districts, citing a time-consuming negotiation it would take amid preceding election stages.
