Indonesian presidential election, 2004
Under the new amendment, a candidate pair is elected into office after receiving more than 50 percent of the vote nationally with at least 20 percent of the vote in more than half of the provinces of Indonesia. If no pair receives the amount of votes required, the election will continue into the 2nd round with the pairs receiving the highest and 2nd highest number of votes. Further regulations set by the General Election Commission state that each pair must be nominated by a political party or coalition of parties which received at least five percent of the popular vote or three percent of the seats to the People's Representative Council in the April legislative election.
The incumbent President, Megawati Sukarnoputri, was elected into office in 2001 after the legislature impeached and removed her predecessor from office. Megawati's re-election bid was challenged by four candidates, including incumbent Vice President Hamzah Haz. In the 1st round, former cabinet member and retired General Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono received a plurality of the valid ballots submitted, followed by Megawati. Yudhoyono eventually defeated Megawati with 60.62 percent of the valid ballots in the 2nd round. He was inaugurated as the 6th President of Indonesia on 20 October 2004.
Former security minister Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono won the 1st round with 33% of the vote. Incumbent President Megawati Sukarnoputri was 2nd with 26%, ahead of former armed forces chief Wiranto on 22%. Yudhoyono didn't do as well as earlier opinion polls had suggested, while Megawati did better. This was attributed by Indonesian observers to Yudhoyono's lack of a nation-wide party machine, such as Megawati's PDI-P and Wiranto's Golkar.
The counting of 113 million votes, already a huge task in such a large and diverse country, was made more difficult by problems with the ballot papers. Voters cast their ballots by making a hole in the ballot paper with a nail, above the photo of their preferred candidate. Because the ballot paper was handed to voters folded in half, many made the hole without unfolding the ballot, thus making two holes and invalidating their vote. Hundreds of thousands of these votes were invalidated before the General Election Committee ruled that such ballots should be accepted. This necessitated recounts in many places, slowing the count and raising fears of a disputed result.
In the 1999 legislative election, the Indonesian Democratic Party â€" Struggle won the largest number of seats in the People's Representative Council (DPR) and became the largest faction in the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR), the legislative body responsible for electing the President. The PDIâ€"P was led by Megawati Sukarnoputri, daughter of Sukarno, Indonesia's 1st president. Megawati's supporters had expected her to be elected President by the MPR, but she failed to reach out to parties other than the National Awakening Party (PKB). Her only opponent at the time was President Bacharuddin Jusuf Habibie, who came into office in May 1998, but he withdrew his candidacy after his accountability speech was rejected by the MPR. The PKB, which was led by Abdurrahman Wahid, the leader of Indonesia's largest Islamic organization Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), had also pledged to support Megawati for President. However, it became clear that Megawati didn't have enough votes to back her candidacy. Additionally, National Mandate Party (PAN) leader Amien Rais and his Central Axis (Indonesian: Poros Tengah), a coalition of Islamic and reform parties, began pushing for Abdurrahman's candidacy.
Abdurrahman eventually won the MPR's presidential election, and Megawati was elected as Vice President. As President, he repealed many of the laws enacted during the Suharto era that discriminated against Chinese Indonesians. Among these were bans on the use of Chinese characters and display of images relating to Chinese culture. Following this act, many political parties began to reach out to Chinese Indonesians for their votes by displaying Chinese characters on campaign material.
Following Abdurrahman's impeachment and removal from office by the MPR in July 2001, the legislative body elevated Megawati to the presidency. She would complete the remainder of Abdurrahman's five-year term, ending in October 2004. During its 2002 annual session, the MPR added a series of amendments to the Constitution of Indonesia, including the removal of the military's 38 appointed seats in the Assembly, and an amendment for direct election of the President and Vice President. This presidential election process would involve political parties nominating a presidential and vice presidential ticket with the option of runoff election.
In December 2003, the International Foundation for Electoral Systems began a tracking survey in order to assess the popularity of potential candidates. The survey continued until the start of the 1st election round on 5 July and included thirteen possible candidates for President. The 1st IFES survey indicated that incumbent President Megawati Sukarnoputri received a plurality of the votes. However, by the time of the April 2004 legislative election, retired General Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono had taken the lead from Megawati after resigning from her cabinet in March. Other potential candidates included DPR Speaker Akbar Tanjung and Yogyakarta Sultan Hamengkubuwana X.
The results of the legislative election determined which political parties were eligible to submit presidential tickets. Only parties which received at least five percent of the popular vote or three percent of seats in the DPR would be allowed to submit candidates. Parties that didn't meet these criteria must join with other parties to meet at least one criterion. Seven political parties met these criteria: the Party of the Functional Groups (Golkar), the Indonesian Democratic Party â€" Struggle (PDIâ€"P), the National Awakening Party (PKB), the United Development Party (PPP), the Democratic Party (PD), the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), and the National Mandate Party (PAN). The PKS was the only party not to nominate candidates, but it later threw its support behind the PAN.
The General Election Commission announced the final list of candidates on 14 May. Following the announcement, all candidates were required to undergo medical screening. On 22 May, the Commission announced that the PKB's presidential candidate, former President Abdurrahman Wahid, had failed the eye test and wasn't allowed to enter in the election. He initially told supporters not to vote for a presidential candidate on election day but decided to retract that statement after pressure from the party.
Golkar had won the April legislative election after losing to the PDIâ€"P five years prior. The party nominated retired General Wiranto and Salahuddin Wahid, deputy chairman of the National Human Rights Commission, for its presidential ticket. The pair was assigned the number 1 for its ballot.
Wiranto was an adjutant to former President Suharto in 1989â€"1993. During this time, he rapidly rose to the rank of full general and eventually became the head of the National Armed Forces. When riots broke out throughout the country in 1998 against Suharto, he refused to take control in order to avoid the deaths of protesting university students. In 1999, as East Timor held an independence referendum, Wiranto was accused of having taken part in inciting violence among East Timorese along with several other officers; however, he was never issued an arrest warrant by Interpol. Under President Abdurrahman Wahid, Wiranto served as the Coordinating Minister for Political and Security Affairs but was later dismissed. On 20 April 2004, the Golkar Convention voted to nominate him for President over DPR Speaker Akbar Tanjung in the 2nd round of voting.
On 9 May, Golkar selected Salahuddin Wahid as its vice presidential candidate after an endorsement was made by his brother Abdurrahman. Because Salahuddin was also a deputy chairman of the Central Board of Nahdlatul Ulama, many NU members criticized him for not adhering to the organization's khittah, which affirmed the NU's status as a non-political organization. With this nomination, PKB leaders officially supported the Wirantoâ€"Salahuddin pair for the election.
Salahuddin's position on the human rights commission helped the reputation of Wiranto. However, because both candidates were of Javanese background, they were not expected to attract as many voters who were not Javanese.
Incumbent President Megawati Sukarnoputri was the PDIâ€"P's top nominee. She was joined by vice presidential candidate Hasyim Muzadi, general chairman of Indonesia's largest Islamic organization Nahdlatul Ulama. The pair was assigned the number 2 for its ballot.
According to a report released by the National Democratic Institute for International Affairs, Megawati has a "unique burden of being the only candidate in the race who is held responsible for the current situation most voters are unhappy with" in spite of the fact that several other candidates have been members of her government. However, the general discontent for her presidency was attributed largely to the failure of the government to communicate Megawati's achievements rather than the state of the country itself. The PDIâ€"P came in 2nd during the April legislative election with 18.5 percent of the votes, a reduction by almost half from the 33.7 percent it had received in 1999.
Hasyim Muzadi had been mentioned as a possible running mate for Megawati as early as November 2003. His candidacy was officially announced by Megawati on 6 May. As Chairman of the Central Board of Nahdlatul Ulama, he was criticized by many NU members for not adhering to the organization's khittah and the principle of political neutrality. Muslim intellectual Nurcholish Madjid had called on him to step down from the position following the announcement of the candidacy.
The two candidates' Javanese background were not expected attract as many non-Javanese voters. However, the candidates' status as civilians attracted those who didn't favor candidates with a military background, and they also were expected to attract both secular and religious voters.
The PAN nominated Amien Rais, chairman of the MPR, as its presidential candidate. His running mate was Siswono Yudohusodo. The pair was assigned the number 3 for its ballot.
Amien Rais had once served as the chairman of Muhammadiyah. However, despite leading the 2nd largest Islamic organization in Indonesia, Amien established the PAN following the resignation of President Suharto as a party not based on religious affiliation. He became an influential figure in the early days of the reform period and was eventually elected to lead the MPR. Among voters, he was seen as a candidate who had no association with the corruption that was endemic to the nation's government. Voters also saw him as an ambitious person and as one who was known for being an orator. Amien's party had received 6.4 percent of the votes during the legislative election.
On the other hand, Siswono Yudohusodo was a relative newcomer to the political scene. He served as the chairman of the Indonesian Farmers' Association and held ministerial positions during the later years of Suharto's presidency. Siswono was the wealthiest of any candidate for President or Vice President based on reports submitted by candidates to the Corruption Eradication Commission.
Like Megawati and Hasyim, Amien and Siswono were also not expected to attract many non-Javanese voters. The pair was supported by the PKS, the 7th party which met the criteria to submit presidential and vice presidential candidates but didn't do so, and a number of smaller parties.
The Democratic Party, supported by the Indonesian Justice and Unity Party and Crescent Star Party (PBB), nominated retired General Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono for its presidential candidate. He was later joined by Jusuf Kalla as running mate, and the pair was assigned the number 4 for its ballot.
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