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PDI-P turns to administrative court to challenge Gibran VP candidacy
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A General Elections Commission (KPU) official checks a presidential election ballot at a logistics warehouse at Cempaka Putih Sports Hall in Central Jakarta on Feb. 5, 2024. (Antara/Erlangga Bregas Prakoso)
T
he Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) has turned to an administrative court to challenge the candidacy of Gibran Rakabuming Raka, who won the February election alongside president-elect Prabowo Subianto over the PDI-P’s own candidate pair Ganjar Pranowo-Mahfud MD.
The PDI-P filed the motion with the Jakarta State Administrative Court on Tuesday, challenging the General Elections Commission’s (KPU) decision last year allowing Gibran to register as vice presidential candidate despite the commission having yet to adjust the age requirement in its internal regulation. The party demands the court order the annulment of Gibran’s candidacy as well as the ensuing election results.
Gibran, President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo’s son, was initially ineligible to run in the Feb. 14 election because he was below the minimum age of 40 for registering his candidacy, as set in the KPU regulation that was in line with the 2017 General Elections Law.
But the Constitutional Court took an unexpected turn on Oct. 16 of last year that removed the minimum age requirement for candidates with experience as elected officials in the elections law, effectively enabling Surakarta Mayor Gibran to run as the running mate to the eventual winner Prabowo.
Instead of immediately bringing its candidacy regulation into compliance with the candidacy ruling, the KPU simply notified political parties about the changes introduced by the ruling and opened the registration for candidates on Oct. 19 without changing the regulation.
The KPU eventually requested a meeting with lawmakers, which is a prerequisite to revising the candidacy regulation, in the following days and subsequently revised the regulation on Nov. 3, more than a week after Gibran registered his bid.
“The KPU still used the former regulation when it opened the registration for candidates. This means the KPU violated laws and the candidacy was legally flawed. And so was the KPU’s ensuing certification of election results,” PDI-P lawyer Erna Ratnaningsih said on Tuesday.
