Since the 2009 Elections, the electoral district for the House of Representatives of the Republic of Indonesia (DPR) has been determined by the DPR and the Government through a law. In the 2019 elections, even the electoral districts of the Provincial DPRD also became part of the Election Law (UU). Only the electoral districts of the Regency/City DPRD are drawn up by the General Election Commission (KPU).
The electoral districts of the DPR RI and Provincial DPRD in the Election Law No.7/2017 have several problems. First, based on the results of the DPR election in 2019, there was a significant discrepancy in vote prices from the 80 electoral districts which is contrary to the principle of equality of vote value in the formation of electoral districts. For example, the price of one seat in the XI East Java electoral district is 212,081, while in the North Kalimantan electoral area it is only 37,616 votes.
The second problem is that the existing electoral districts are not proportional. The number of DPR seats for outside Java Island exceeds the percentage of its population and the number of DPR seats for Java Island is below the percentage of its population.
Provinces that fall under the category of underrepresentation are Riau Islands (542,750), Banten (520,100), West Java (510,941), North Sumatra (499,693), and Riau (486,215). Meanwhile, provinces that are classified as overrepresented are South Sulawesi (365,396), Aceh (381,038), West Sumatra (384,536), Papua (246,440) and West Sulawesi (295,400).
The Constitutional Court returned authority to the KPU
The Constitutional Court granted the request for judicial review of the Association for Elections and Democracy (Perludem) regarding the electoral district. In the Constitutional Court Decision No.80/PUU-XX/2022, the Constitutional Court emphasized eight things in its legal considerations.
First, the principles of electoral districting. Article 185 of the Election Law stipulates 7 principles, namely equality of vote value, adherence to a proportional election system, proportionality, territorial integrity, being within the same area, cohesiveness, and continuity. These principles must be fulfilled to strengthen the fulfillment of the principles of direct, general, free, secret, honest and fair elections.
Second, the electoral districting is one of the election stages in accordance with Article 167 paragraph (4) of the Election Law. Article 12 letter d of the Election Law also states that the KPU is tasked with coordinating, organizing, controlling and monitoring all stages of the general election. The electoral districting is the task and authority of the KPU.
"When an electoral district is determined as part of the law, it means that the legislator has taken a role in determining the electoral district. In fact, the determination of electoral districts is a stage of holding general elections which is within the scope of the KPU's duties, " page 137 of the Constitutional Court Decision No.80/PUU-XX/2022.
Third, legal certainty. Each rule must not contain a conflict of interest. The electoral districts formed by the DPR, which incidentally are election participants, cause a conflict of interest.
Fourth, the electoral district needs to be evaluated. The Constitutional Court reminded the KPU not only to consider the high and low "price" of seats in terms of the number of votes for each seat in the electoral district, but also to consider other strategic aspects such as the high value of a seat borne by election participants. Thus, the proportionality of seats between electoral districts, especially between the electoral districts in Java Island and those outside Java, can still be maintained proportionally.
"So far, if there are additional seats and electoral districts, it is due to regional expansion. In fact, the evaluation is not only due to the new area, but also the addition and reduction of the population," explained the Executive Director of Perludem, Khoirunnisa Nur Agustyati, in the discussion "Consistency of Seat Allocation and Electoral District Arrangements Based on the Constitutional Court's Decision" (1/13).
Fifth, that the electoral districts which are attachment to the Election Law cause an imbalance of votes in electoral districts, disproportionality and not integral. For example, the number of seats allocated for the Banten Provincial DPRD in the annex to the Election Law is 85 seats. The population in Banten Province in 2020 will increase to 11,904,562 people. Referring to Article 188 paragraph (2) letter g of the Election Law, Banten Province is included in the category of obtaining 100 seats in the Provincial DPRD.
"Banten should be entitled to 100 seats in 2024, but because the electoral district is an attachment to the law, it is something we cannot change," said Ninis.
The Constitutional Court also emphasized that the determination of electoral districts is the KPU's scope of work and that electoral districts can be regulated through KPU Regulations (PKPU). The arrangement of electoral districts also applies to the 2024 Election, and in the process of preparing electoral districts, the KPU needs to consult with the Government and the DPR.
“However, the decision returns to the KPU as an independent institution. The DPR may provide input, but the KPU is the final party that decides independently," concluded Ninis.
The Constitutional Court's decision has returned the authority to create electoral districts to the KPU, an independent and neutral election management body. In the Southeast Asia Region, Malaysia is a country that places the EMB as the authority. Meanwhile in the Philippines, electoral districts are formed by parliament. []
This article is translated by Catherine Natalia.
