35th NU Congress: Unrest Subsides, Fourth Plenary Session Schedules Opening of AHWA Ballot Boxes

The fourth plenary session of the 35th Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) Congress, held in Jombang, East Java, has resumed following an incident of unrest within the congress arena. The primary agenda for this plenary session is the opening of ballot boxes containing the names of the Ahlul Halli wal Aqdi (AHWA) members, as selected by the congress participants.

The process of transferring the ballot boxes from storage to the plenary meeting room was conducted under strict escort by the internal security team. The boxes were transported using an open vehicle before being officially handed over to the session leadership.

M. Nuh, the chair of the 3uju5th NU Congress plenary session, personally received the boxes in the presence of the participants to begin the data tabulation process. “Thank you, the boxes have been received and tabulation will proceed immediately,” stated M. Nuh as he opened the counting session on Sunday (30/08/2026).

The organising committee has implemented strict validation procedures before the counting begins. Every support sheet must be verified to ensure it has been signed by authorised officials. The committee emphasised that any support not accompanied by an official signature will be declared invalid.

To maintain transparency, the tabulation process involves several witnesses representing the Regional NU Executive Boards (PWNU) and Branch NU Executive Boards (PCNU). There are a total of six ballot boxes to be counted sequentially to determine the nine clerics who will join the AHWA ranks.

Based on preliminary data, several senior NU clerics have emerged among the proposed names for the AHWA. The process of tabulation is still ongoing in the plenary meeting room. Given the large volume of support that must be verified and entered, the process is expected to take considerable time before the final results of the nine AHWA members are officially announced to the public.