Sandi, a former running mate to Prabowo Subianto in the previous presidential race, officially joined one of the country’s oldest Islamic parties on Wednesday, after a symbolic handover of his membership card and a jacket in the party’s formal green color.

“After seven months of intense silaturahmi [meetings] and two months of exploration, Alhamdulillah [Thank God] I’ve been accepted into the big family of the PPP,” Sandi said.

His arrival at the PPP came just two months after bidding farewell to the Gerindra Party, which is led by his political patron Defense Minister Prabowo and which had been his political vehicle to win the Jakarta deputy-governor’s post in 2017 and compete as Prabowo’s running mate just two years later.

The 53-year-old entrepreneur, often regarded as having a somewhat goofy and unserious public persona, is nevertheless a seasoned player in the business world, having cofounded Saratoga Investama Sedaya in 1997 and turning it into one of the largest diversified conglomerates in the country. He served on the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KADIN) as vice chairman for small and medium enterprises in 2009 before deciding to enter politics.

He joined Gerindra as an advisor in 2015, but his lack of political experience did not hold him back from securing support to run alongside former education minister Anies Baswedan in the highly divisive 2017 Jakarta gubernatorial election. Anies and Sandi won against incumbent governor Basuki “Ahok” Tjahaja Purnama in the run-off.

Less than a year into his term as deputy governor, Sandi was declared Prabowo’s pick for vice-presidential candidate in a bid to unseat President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo in the 2019 election, which they lost by a double-digit margin. Both Prabowo and Sandi later joined Jokowi’s administration, with Sandi serving as tourism and creative economy minister, a position he holds to this day.

Signs of a souring relationship between Sandi and Prabowo emerged earlier this year after the former was seen getting cozy with the PPP, one of the founding members of the Golkar-led United Indonesia Coalition (KIB) electoral alliance, which has been candid about nominating him as vice-presidential candidate.

VP ticket?

With the PPP having officially backed the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle’s (PDI-P) presidential nominee, Central Java Governor Ganjar Pranowo, the Islam-based party could now “formally propose Sandiaga as Ganjar’s running mate”, Paramadina University political lecturer Ahmad Khoirul Umam told The Jakarta Post.

“Even though the final decision [on Ganjar’s running mate] rests in the hands of PDI-P chairwoman Megawati Soekarnoputri, the PPP, as the first party [with representation in the House of Representatives] to throw support behind Ganjar’s candidacy, has ample bargaining power to encourage the PDI-P to consider [Sandi],” Umam said on Friday.

Sandi’s name was among those mentioned by President Jokowi being considered as a potential running mate for Ganjar, having commanded a top-five spot of preferred vice-presidential candidates in many opinion polls.

A recent Indikator Politik Indonesia (IPI) survey, taken between May 26 and 30, placed the tourism minister in fourth place with 13.1 percent support, trailing behind State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) Minister Erick Thohir with 15.5 percent, West Java Governor Ridwan Kamil with 15.4 percent, and Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Affairs Minister Mahfud MD’s 13.4 percent.

However, Sandi’s allegedly opportunistic nature, as evidenced in his recent party-hopping, could appear to make him a wild card for the PDI-P, just one of a few drawbacks that Megawati is aware of, said Bawono Kumoro, an IPI researcher.

“Sandiaga, if picked as vice-presidential candidate, has the potential to threaten PDI-P interests and Ganjar in the 2029 presidential race,” Bawono told the Post recently.

“Should he and Ganjar win the country’s top positions, Sandiaga could see his electability rise in the next five years, political capital that he could use to run against Ganjar in the 2029 presidential race,” the analyst added.

When asked about the possibility he might not get on any ticket, Sandi claimed on Thursday that he would bear no hard feelings because he “understood that the authority to decide on a running mate is in the hands of party leaders”.

‘Transactional’

Whatever his chances, Sandi is prepared to bring his business chops and wealth to the table for the PPP.

Speaking to reporters after his welcoming ceremony in Central Jakarta, Sandi made his pitch to party members to empower an “Islam-based economy”, which he said was among the aspirations of the party’s constituents.

“I will stand together with the PPP to meet the public’s demand for the leadership to focus on issues that have an impact on communities, such as the Islamic economy, efforts to empower MSMEs and job creation,” he said.

Expressing optimism over a rise in the party’s support after Sandi’s arrival, PPP acting chairman Muhammad Mardiono touted the businessman as a “lucky charm” as the party aims to win up to 50 seats in the House next year.

“We’re hopeful that he brings luck with his arrival. He is a successful man as both an entrepreneur and a politician, with the win in the Jakarta gubernatorial election,” Mardiono said.

After being repeatedly plunged into a string of leadership crises, the PPP has seen its electability fall to below 4 percent, under the legislative threshold, putting it at risk of being unable to enter the House after the upcoming legislative elections. Last year, the party fired its former chairman Suharso Monoarfa after a “slip of the tongue” that angered Muslim clerics, prompting Mardiono’s rise.

“The PPP can make use of Sandi’s popularity to boost the party’s electability and attract positive sentiment for the party, some of whose members fear it will experience devaluation in the 2024 elections,” Paramadina’s Umam said.

“To optimize the PPP’s electoral incentive after recruiting Sandiaga, the party needs to give him more roles and responsibilities within the party structure,” he added.

The PPP was expected to announce Sandi’s role in the party during the close of its national leadership meeting on Saturday.