Indonesia

Key Takeaways: Cost of Politics

Population: 277.5 million
Head of Government: President Prabowo Subianto
Ruling party/coalition: Onward Indonesia Coalition
Last election: 2024
Next election: 2029
Registered voters: 204.8 million (2024)
Annual salary of member of legislature (plus benefits): IDR 648 million (US$43,200)
Year of study: 2024

In the 2024 elections, candidates interviewed for this research spent on average IDR 5 billion (US$315,000), almost eight times the annual salary of a legislator.

Some respondents openly admitted to distributing money in envelopes to buy votes through their campaign teams while others claimed that only their political opponents did so, with the figures ranging from IDR 100,000–500,000.

From 25.2% in 2009, the percentage of incumbent candidates who have successfully sought re-election has steadily increased reaching 56% in 2024.

The share of lawmakers elected to the DPR RI and DPD RI that were neither incumbents nor family members of political leaders, was just 1.7% and 9.5% respectively in 2024.

While the election law rules that the campaign period occurs only during the 75 days before the voting day, legislative candidates incur campaign costs for as much as two years before the election cycle formally begins.

Party support tends to be very limited with any funds awarded done at the discretion of the national party chairperson.

The average person in Indonesia - median income is IDR 36 million - would need to work for 140 years without spending any of their income to be able to fund a political campaign.

Key Findings

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Context

The February 2024 vote marked the fifth direct election during the Reformasi era, and for the first time, national and subnational legislative elections were held simultaneously with the presidential vote. With nearly 205 million voters eligible to cast their ballots in more than 823,000 polling stations across 38 provinces and 128 representative countries, it was the world’s largest single-day elections
The democratisation process in Indonesia gained significant momentum on 21 May 1998. Until that point, Suharto's authoritarian practices had largely stifled electoral representation by undermining two core elements of democracy: political participation and representation.
The proportional representation system – variations of which had been in place since Indonesia’s first elections in 1955 - evolved from a closed list proportional system, where the number of seats in an electoral district were allocated proportionally based on its population, to a fully open-list proportional system in 2009.
Commitments to gender quotas have been strengthened through Election Laws issued in 2008, 2012, and 2017, to the point that parties now are legally required to nominate a minimum of 30% female candidates at all three legislative levels, though enforcement of this commitment wavered in 2024.
Dynastic politics is a phenomenon that limits aspiring politicians coming from less powerful backgrounds. 220 members of DPR RI (37.8%) have kinship ties with public officials or influential political figures.

Cost of politics

In the 2024 elections, candidates for DPR RI engaged in this research spent between IDR 200 million and IDR 160 billion. These upper and lower end figures are likely outliers rather than the norm, with the average figure, excluding these outliers, given by the seven predominantly female respondents engaged for this study, IDR 5 billion (USD 315,000). However, the range from this small sample highlights the sizable disparity across candidates in terms of campaign expenses that can be a result of their political status, financial capacity, and socio-political background.
Expenditures are, for the most part, a burden borne by individual candidates, often without any support from their political party.
Aspiring candidates not only need to secure the party nomination but also to be listed in winnable list positions. The latter is crucial given that more than 80% of those elected in 2024 occupied the first or second spots on the ballot sheets.
Holding community meetings also requires candidates to spend significant sums. They are expected to pay for refreshments, souvenirs, and offer transport refunds as compensation for attendees taking time out of work to attend which can range from IDR 50,000 to IDR 100,000 per person, per event.
On election day, as well as the immediate post-election period, candidates are still expected to allocate substantial funds to secure victory. The sheer amount of money that candidates disperse at this point is often likened to a tsunami that may wipe out all their remaining resources.
The significant effort invested in the electoral district does not end once a candidate is elected and begins their work as an MP. Addressing constituents' aspirations and advocating for their interests must be managed continuously by representatives.

Raising the required resources

For political aspirants, funding for nominations and campaigns tends to come from three main sources: the candidate's wealth; donations from immediate or extended family members, peer groups and community networks; and party assistance.
In addition to their monthly salary and legislated sources of funds, sitting parliamentarians benefit from distributing government programmes in the form of goods and services. Non-incumbent aspirants are disadvantaged as a result, particularly if they are women.
Party support tends to be very limited – it is mainly confined to a limited supply of campaign props such as banners and t-shirts - with any funds awarded at the discretion of the national party chairperson.

Cost of politics drivers

The open-list proportional representation system makes competition between candidates more pronounced and, in doing so, drives up the cost.
The government’s decision to hold presidential as well as legislative elections - at both national and subnational levels - simultaneously in 2024 increased costs.
Weak and inconsistent enforcement of regulations by the electoral authorities incentivise people with means to spend more.
The preponderance and accepted culture of vote buying drives heightened political costs. Purchasing votes has become normalised in Indonesian politics.

Impacts for democracy

The 2024 election outcomes point to a strong connection between wealth, political connections, and electability among successful youth candidates.
The high costs involved with seeking elective office increase the risk that legislative candidates seek funding from illegitimate sources, both during the campaigns and when in office.
With elections becoming more of a popularity contest rather than processes centred around ideological debates or policy commitments, and MPs focused more on a development agenda that advances their re-election chances than the necessary decisions needed to enhance development more broadly, the quality of democratic debate, at all levels, is in decline.

Recommendations

Increase financial assistance for political parties, which could help political parties be less dependent on political donations and improve the share of female and youth cadres through dedicated training. A bigger share of public funding could justify demanding greater accountability from political parties on how they manage their finances.
Equip Bawaslu with greater and clearer authority to monitor compliance and enforce sanctions towards violation of electoral integrity measures across all election stages.
Intensify the scrutiny of campaign finance reporting by mandating an independent audit and verification, ideally as a requirement, before winning candidates can be sworn into office.
Strengthen the implementation of affirmative action policy for women candidates, for example, by enforcing a pure zipper system between men and women in the ballot paper or even mandating the placement of women candidates on 30% of the first spots. A collective push from women units within political party management structure would be key to realising this reform.
Optimise collaborative civic education efforts, inclusive of CSOs, media, representative institutions and bodies, outside campaign periods, improve popular understanding about how lawmakers and the executive should represent citizen aspirations in policymaking processes.

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