Indonesia’s parliamentary elections on April 9 were significant in fortifying its democracy but they produced unexpected results that belied poll predictions. While forecasters were correct in predicting that the leading parties were likely to be the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDIP), Golkar and Gerindra, they were way off in respect of the margins of victory.

The PDIP, led by former president Megawati Sukarnoputri, got 19 per cent of votes, missing the 20 per cent threshold to nominate a presidential candidate on its own. Golkar and Gerinda garnered 14 and 12 per cent respectively, which would enable them to nominate their presidential and vice-president candidates only if they have coalition partners from among the Muslim and minority parties.

… Bilveer Singh is an associate professor of Political Science at the National University of Singapore, and Adjunct Senior Fellow at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS).