Alexander R. Arifianto is a Research Fellow with the Indonesia Programme at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS), Nanyang Technological University. Previously, he was a Visiting Fellow with the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies (ISEAS) and a Post-doctoral Fellow at the Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies, University of Notre Dame (Indiana, United States of America). In addition, he worked as a research analyst with the SMERU Research Institute in Jakarta, Indonesia. Dr. Arifianto earned his Ph.D. in political science from Arizona State University in August 2012. His ongoing research interests include: Islamic politics in Indonesia, political economy of regional autonomy and local level governance, civil society organizations and democratization in Indonesia, and comparative politics of Southeast Asia. Dr. Arifianto’s articles have been published in a number of refereed journals, including Asian Politics and Policy, Islam and Christian-Muslim Relations, and Journal of Southeast Asian Economies (formerly ASEAN Economic Bulletin). In addition, he recently published a number of articles in an edited volume entitled ISEAS Perspective: Watching the Indonesian Elections 2014, (Singapore: ISEAS Publishing, 2015).

• Indonesian Politics
• Comparative Politics of Southeast Asia
• Islamic Politics in Indonesia
• Political Economy of Regional Autonomy and Local Level Governance
• Civil Society Organizations and Social Movements

Phi Beta Kappa, Ripon College, 1999.

Freeport McMoran Fellowship for Indonesian Studies, Southeast Asian Studies Programme, SAIS-Johns Hopkins University, 2005-07.

Freeman Foundation Fellowship for Southeast Asian Studies, Southeast Asian Studies Programme, SAIS-Johns Hopkins University, 2005-07.

Hardt Graduate Fellowship in Religion, Conflict, and Peace Studies, Center for the Study of Religion and Conflict, Arizona State University, 2010-11.

Association of Asian Studies, Member, 2007-present.

Working Papers

• WP300 | Analysing Transformative Local Leadership in Indonesia

  12 December, 2016

Commentaries

• Run-up to Indonesia’s 2024 Elections - Jokowi's Latest Reshuffle: Stabilising the Ruling Coalition?

  16 June, 2022

• NU’s 2021 National Congress: Contestation Within

  02 December, 2021

• Global Health Security COVID-19 and Its Impacts - Indonesia’s New Lockdown: Jokowi’s Legacy?

  13 July, 2021

• Jokowi’s Sixth Reshuffle: Securing His Legacy?

  30 April, 2021

• All Politics is Local: Retired Officers in Regional Elections

  17 March, 2021

• Indonesia's New Parties: Evolving Conservative Landscape?

  19 November, 2020

• Pancasila Guidance Bill: Tweaking Indonesia’s Ideology?

  08 July, 2020

• Global Health Security: COVID-19 and Its Impacts - Indonesia’s Islamic Charities: Plugging Gaps in Economic Relief

  19 June, 2020

• Global Health Security - Covid-19 Pandemic in Indonesia: Government Response and Politics

  02 April, 2020

• 2019 Indonesian Presidential and Legislative Elections - The New Indonesian Parliament: Who Won and What It Means

  07 May, 2019

• Indonesian Presidential Election 2019 - After the Big Fight: Results and Implications

  22 April, 2019

• Indonesian Presidential Election 2019 - State of Play: Who Will Win in Largest Single-Day Elections?

  12 April, 2019

• Indonesian Presidential Election 2019 - East Java: Deadheat in a Battleground Province

  27 March, 2019

• Indonesian Presidential Election 2019 - Prabowo Subianto: Reluctant Yet Strong Contender

  14 January, 2019

• Indonesian Presidential Election 2019 - Joko Widodo: Vulnerable Despite Strong Incumbency

  11 January, 2019

• CO18123 | The 2019 Indonesian Presidential Election - The Jockeying Gathers Pace: Fluidity Of Candidates and Parties

  20 July, 2018

• CO18110 | Indonesia’s 2018 Regional Elections - Regional Setback For Jokowi?

  28 June, 2018

• CO18107 | Indonesia’s 2018 Regional Elections - West Kalimantan: Identity Politics at the Forefront

  26 June, 2018

• CO18098 | The East Java Gubernatorial Race: Dead Heat but Non-Controversial

  18 June, 2018

• CO18069 | Indonesian Presidential Election 2019 - Islam and Indonesia’s Presidency Race: A Defining Role?

  18 April, 2018

• CO18064 | Indonesia’s 2018 Regional Elections - Pilkada Serentak: Role of Identity Politics

  04 April, 2018

• CO18032 | Indonesia’s Ideological Convergence: Emerging Trend in Islamic Regulations?

  27 February, 2018

• CO17228 | Islamic Defenders Front: An Ideological Evolution?

  04 December, 2017

• CO17213 | Islam with Progress: Muhammadiyah and Moderation in Islam

  10 November, 2017

• CO17136 | Indonesia Ban on Civil Society Bodies: Spot On or Overreach?

  18 July, 2017

• CO17099 | Banning Hizbut Tahrir Indonesia: Freedom or Security?

  18 May, 2017

• CO17018 | Politics, Plurality and Inter-Group Relations in Indonesia - Islam Nusantara & Its Critics: The Rise of NU’s Young Clerics

  23 January, 2017

• CO16289 | Politics, Plurality and Inter-Group Relations - Addressing Religious Intolerance in Indonesia

  28 November, 2016

• CO16194 Jokowi’s Second Cabinet Reshuffle: Implications for Indonesian Politics

  28 July, 2016

• CO16114 | Islam Nusantara: NU’s Bid to Promote “Moderate Indonesian Islam”

  17 May, 2016

• CO15273 | Simultaneous Local Elections in Indonesia: More Power for Incumbents?

  17 December, 2015

• CO15230 | The 2015 Muhammadiyah Muktamar: Narrow Win for Moderates

  28 October, 2015

• CO15189 | The 2015 NU Muktamar: Further Conservative Turn in Indonesian Islam?

  02 September, 2015

IDSS Paper

• IP22003 | Towards “Humanitarian Islam”: New Nahdlatul Ulama Chairman and the Global Initiative to Promote Religious Moderation

  26 January, 2022

Journal Articles

• “The State of Political Islam in Indonesia: The Historical Antecedent and Future Prospects” in Asia Policy, 15, 4, 2020, pp. 111-133
• “Rising Islamism and the Struggle for Islamic Authority in Indonesia” in TRaNS: Trans-National and Regional Studies of Southeast Asia, 8, 1, 2020, 37-50
• “Special Editor’s Introduction: TraNS Special Section on ‘Growing Religious Intolerance in Indonesia’” (with Leonard C. Sebastian) in TRaNS: Trans-National and Regional Studies of Southeast Asia, 8, 2020, 2020. 1-5
• “Rising Islamism and the Struggle for Islamic Authority in Indonesia” in TRaNS: Trans-Regional and -National Studies of Southeast Asia, 2019
• Fionna, Ulla and Alexander R. Arifianto. “Getting to Know the Contestants of the 2014 Indonesian Parliamentary Elections,” in Ulla Fionna (ed.). ISEAS Perspective: Watching the Indonesian Elections 2014, (Singapore: ISEAS Publishing, 2015), pp. 41-53.
• Arifianto, Alexander R. “Explaining the Cause of Muslim-Christian Conflicts in Indonesia: Tracing the Origins of Kristenisasi and Islamisasi,” Islam and Christian-Muslim Relations, 20 (1) (Winter 2009): 73-89
• Arifianto, Alexander R. “The Securitization of International Labor Migration: The Case of Malaysia and Indonesia,” Asian Politics and Policy, 1 (4) (Fall 2009): 613-630.

Edited Books / Special Issues

• The 2018 and 2019 Indonesian Elections: Identity Politics and Regional Perspectives (with Leonard C. Sebastian), Eds. Abingdon: Routledge, 2020
• Rising Islamic Conservatism in Indonesia: Islamic Groups and Identity Politics (with Leonard C. Sebastian, and Syafiq Hasyim), Eds. Abingdon: Routledge, 2020

Chapters in Edited Books

• Arifianto, Alexander R. “Unpacking the Results of the 2014 Indonesian Legislative Elections,” in Ulla Fionna (ed.). ISEAS Perspective: Watching the Indonesian Elections 2014, (Singapore: ISEAS Publishing, 2015), pp. 62-74.
• Arifianto, Alexander R. “Indonesian Islamic Parties after the 2014 Elections: Divided and Self-Centered,” in Ulla Fionna (ed.). ISEAS Perspective: Watching the Indonesian Elections 2014, (Singapore: ISEAS Publishing, 2015), pp. 123-136.
• Arifianto, Alexander R., Ulla Fionna, and Gwenael Njoto-Feillard. “A Snapshot of the Campaigning in Indonesia’s 2014 Legislative Elections,” in Ulla Fionna (ed.). ISEAS Perspective: Watching the Indonesian Elections 2014, (Singapore: ISEAS Publishing, 2015), pp. 54-61.
• Sambodo, Maxensius Tri and Alexander R. Arifianto. “Analyzing the Economic Platforms in the Indonesian Presidential Election,” in Ulla Fionna (ed.). ISEAS Perspective: Watching the Indonesian Elections 2014, (Singapore: ISEAS Publishing, 2015), pp. 114-122.
• Sumarto, Sudarno, Asep Suryahadi, and Alexander R. Arifianto, “Governance and Poverty Reduction: Evidence from Newly Decentralized Indonesia.” in Yasutami Shimomura (ed.), The Role of Governance in Asia, (Singapore: ISEAS Publishing, 2003), pp. 27-64.

Op-Eds

• “Nahdlatul Ulama’s New Chair Faces a Difficult Choice: Political Neutrality or Patronage”, Indonesia at Melbourne, 18 January 2022
• “Indonesia’s Coronavirus Crisis Will Define President Joko Widodo’s Legacy as Cases Surge”, South China Morning Post, 14 July 2021
• “US-Indonesia Relations Needs a Reboot” (with Yohanes Sulaiman), East Asia Forum, 28 June 2021
• “Indonesian Ulema Council Edges Closer to the Centre of Power”, East Asia Forum, 9 December 2020
• “Religious Power Brokers and Growing Intolerance in Indonesia”, Religion and Global Society: A London School of Economics (LSE) Blog, 8 July 2020
• “Jokowi wins second term as Indonesian president, but the Islamist challenge remains”, ASPI, The Strategist, 22 May 2019
• “Is Islam an increasingly polarizing political cleavage in Indonesia? What the recent election shows”, Brookings Institute (Order from Chaos), 25 April 2019
• Alexander R. Arifianto. “What Explains Rising Islamism in Indonesia?” IAPS Dialogue, Institute of Asia and Pacific Studies, University of Nottingham, United Kingdom. Available at: https://iapsdialogue.org/2017/08/01/what-explains-rising-islamism-in-indonesia/ (1 August 2018).