JAKARTA, LEGAL LITERACY – The Constitutional Court (MK) has granted 44 cases of the 2024 Legislative Election (Pileg) dispute with various orders, including matching votes, recounting ballots, and re-voting in several electoral districts. The General Election Commission (KPU) has been given a specific deadline to follow up on this MK decision.

On Monday (10/6/2024), the MK completed the reading of the decision regarding disputes over the results of the general election (PHPU) of legislative members. Of the 299 cases registered, 44 cases were granted either partially or wholly. In detail, 6 cases were granted in full and 38 cases were granted in part.

Significant Increase in Legislative Election Disputes

The number of 2024 Legislative Election dispute cases granted by the MK increased more than threefold compared to the 2019 Legislative Election dispute, where only 12 out of 260 cases were accepted. Most of the cases granted were disputes over the PHPU of members of the district/city DPRD and provincial DPRD. Meanwhile, only two cases of PHPU members of the House of Representatives (DPR) were granted, and one case of PHPU members of the Regional Representative Council (DPD).

Details of the Constitutional Court's Order

In the decision granted, the MK ordered various actions to ensure the accuracy of the election results. In the East Kalimantan electoral district, the MK ordered the KPU to recount ballots in 147 polling stations (TPS), which must be completed no later than 21 days after the decision was read. Constitutional Justice Arsul Sani stated that the court found it difficult to determine the correct vote acquisition at these polling stations, which raised doubts about the truth of the vote acquisition.

Meanwhile, in the Banten II electoral district, the MK ordered the KPU to match the PDI-P vote acquisition data with the results of the recapitulation at the sub-district level in 120 TPS, which must be carried out no later than 30 days from the date the decision was read.

Challenges for the KPU

Researcher from the Association for Elections and Democracy (Perludem), Fadli Ramadhanil, criticized the KPU for the increase in the number of cases granted. According to him, this indicates problems in the professionalism and accountability of the KPU at various levels. The KPU is considered to have failed to maintain the purity of voters' votes, which led to changes in votes during the tiered manual recapitulation process. This failure was seen during the vote recapitulation at a higher level, where the KPU failed to make the necessary corrections.

Fadli also highlighted problems in the nomination process, where the KPU was considered incompetent in ensuring the requirements for nomination, including a minimum of 30 percent female representation and the eligibility of former convicts.

Implementation of Decisions and Replacement of Organizers

Fadli emphasized that the KPU must immediately map out all the cases that have been granted and follow up on them according to the deadlines given by the MK. In addition, problematic election organizers must be replaced to ensure that the implementation of the MK's decision does not cause further problems. "Follow-up must be carried out professionally so that it is not brought to the MK again," he said.

Specific Cases

In the case of disputes over DPR members, two cases were granted, namely in the East Kalimantan and Banten II electoral districts. In the East Kalimantan electoral district, the MK ordered a recount of ballots in 147 TPS. Meanwhile, in the Banten II electoral district, the MK ordered the matching of vote acquisition data in 120 TPS.

One case of PHPU members of the DPD in West Sumatra filed by Irman Gusman was also granted, with an order for a re-vote (PSU) within 45 days from the date the decision was read, without a campaign period.

Reactions from PDI-P and Golkar

Chairman of the Central Leadership Council of PDI-P, Komarudin Watubun, stated that PDI-P respects all MK decisions, but emphasized that the position of chairman of the DPR will be obtained by the party with the most seats. Deputy Chairman of Golkar, Ahmad Doli Kurnia Tandjung, also stated that two cases of PHPU members of the DPR involving Golkar had been rejected by the MK, so Golkar's seats remained safe.

In this election, Golkar won 102 DPR seats, up 17 seats compared to the 2019 Election, which according to Doli is a fantastic achievement under the leadership of Chairman Airlangga.

Here is a complete report on the increase in legislative election dispute cases in 2024 that were granted by the Constitutional Court, as well as the challenges and steps that need to be taken by the KPU and related political parties.