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Jokowi's political future still open to possibilities
As the President's entry into any existing party would require changes to internal party rules, creating a new political party with his volunteer organization members might be an easier path.
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President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo (center) arrives on May 6, 2024, to the Jakarta Convention Center in Central Jakarta where he will open the National Development Planning Conference (Musrenbangnas). (Antara/Sigid Kurniawan)
W
hile President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo has parted way with the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), his political future looks promising as some political parties that have supported president-elect Prabowo Subianto have hinted at the possibility of him becoming party chair or holding a strategic party role after leaving office in October.
But this may not be straightforward, as the parties, which include Golkar and the National Mandate Party (PAN), are established institutions that have been running on fixed internal party regulations for decades.
High-ranking leaders of Golkar, which became the second largest political party after the PDI-P in the February legislative election, have welcomed Jokowi, with party chief and senior economic minister Airlangga Hartarto saying Jokowi and his son, vice president-elect Gibran Rakabuming Raka, are “already part of the Golkar family.”
Golkar deputy chairman Erwin Aksa said the party welcomes Jokowi, but his entry also depends on what Jokowi wants from the party.
“Pak Jokowi, of course, has plans for Golkar. He’s the one who knows his plans for after [his term ends] on Oct. 20,” he told The Jakarta Post on Friday.
Erwin said it was not possible for Jokowi to lead the country’s oldest political party based on the party’s current internal regulations, which require that candidates for party chairmanship serve on its executive board for at least one full period.
But a regulation change, he said, "is possible" during a party congress, which is slated for December, to open the doors for Jokowi to become party chairman.
