2024 Presidential Election: Current Progress
JI-Jakarta. The Golkar Party has emerged as a potential strategic ally for parties across the political divisions, with a crop of party leaders from both pro-government and opposition parties courting the nation’s grand old party for alliance building.
National Awakening Party (PKB) Chair Muhaimin Iskandar and Golkar Party Chair Airlangga Hartarto opened the possibility of stitching a political bloc together, saying the prospect would be “a wide and huge opportunity” to build a strong big-tent alliance to contest in the 2024 general elections.
Gerindra Party deputy chief patron Sandiaga Uno has said that he will discuss with party leader Prabowo Subianto the aspirations of the United Development Party (PPP), following that party’s nomination of Sandiaga as a potential candidate for the 2024 presidential election.
Sandiaga, who currently serves as the tourism and creative industry minister in the Cabinet of President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo, was Prabowo’s running mate in the previous election, when they lost to the Jokowi-Maruf Amin pair by a wide margin.
The PPP announced its intention to nominate Sandiaga during the party’s 50th anniversary event in Malino, South Sulawesi, on Sunday. The party’s acting leader, Mardino, called Sandiaga a “national asset, a commander that could help the tourist sector faster compared with other nations”.
Almost 20 percent respondents would vote for Central Java Governor Ganjar Pranowo if the presidential election were to be held today, according to a recent polling by Populi Center.
Meanwhile, about 17 percent respondents would vote for Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto, and 10.8 percent would vote for former Jakarta Governor Anies Baswedan.
Populi Center said Ganjar’s electability had increased significantly since its October 2022 poll. Prabowo’s electability increased as well, surpassing Anies, whose electability declined after not serving as Jakarta governor.
The National Awakening Party (PKB) has played down the recent meeting between Gerindra Party chairman Prabowo Subianto and East Java Governor Khofifah Indar Parawansa, despite speculations that the former military general was looking for an alternative candidate to PKB leader Muhaimin Iskandar.
The PKB and Gerindra have forged an alliance for 2024 and agreed to endorse Prabowo as their presidential candidate, but the latter has yet to agree to the former’s demand that its leader, Muhaimin, be nominated as Prabowo’s running mate.
During his working visit to Surabaya, East Java, on Monday, Prabowo invited Khofifah, a PKB politician, to dinner, drawing speculation that he was in search of a more electable running mate other than Muhaimin.
Saiful Mujani Research and Consulting released the results of a survey of potential candidates with backgrounds from Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), which showed PKB Chair Muhaimin Iskandar occupying the top position as a presidential candidate from NU circles with an electability of 18.2 percent.
Muhaimin is followed by Political, Legal, and Security Affairs Coordinating Minister Mahfud M.D. with 18 percent, East Java Governor Khofifah Indar Parawansa with 15.4 percent; former NU chair Said Aqil with 2.9 percent; and NU Chair Yahya Cholil Staquf with 2.6 percent.
