Golkar Proposes Parliamentary Threshold of 4-6 Percent

The Golkar Party proposes that the parliamentary threshold for DPR legislative elections be set in the range of 4 to 6 percent. Deputy General Chairman of the Golkar Party, Ahmad Doli Kurnia Tandjung, stated that this figure is considered the equilibrium point in evaluating the electoral system. “A parliamentary threshold of 4-6 percent is ideal,” said Doli when contacted on Wednesday, 22 April 2026.

Previously, Golkar Party Secretary General Muhammad Sarmuji also proposed a parliamentary threshold of 5 percent. According to him, this figure is a combination of the parliamentary threshold and the faction threshold. “A 5 percent figure can create a simple multi-party system,” said Sarmuji via WhatsApp message on Saturday, 28 February 2026.

He emphasised that the implementation of the parliamentary threshold does indeed have the potential to cause votes not to be converted into seats. However, according to him, the existence of the threshold is still necessary.

Sarmuji explained that the parliamentary threshold plays an important role in simplifying the multi-party system while accommodating political aspirations in Indonesia. He acknowledged that if the threshold were abolished, opportunities for parties to enter parliament would be more open. However, this is considered to encourage an overly extreme multi-party system. “We are trying to be wise and prudent, thus proposing a 5 percent figure for the parliamentary threshold in 2029,” said this Golkar Party Faction Chairman.

Last year, the Constitutional Court in Case Number 116/PUU-XVIII/2023 decided to abolish the provision of a 4 percent parliamentary threshold in the Election Law. In its legal considerations, the Court assessed that the provision was not in line with the principles of popular sovereignty, electoral justice, and legal certainty guaranteed by the constitution.

In response to this, the Head of the Politics and Social Change Department at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), Arya Fernandes, said that there is no universal ideal standard for determining the threshold level. “It depends on the domestic needs,” said Arya on Saturday, 28 February 2026.

In the context of Indonesian election politics, he proposed lowering the threshold to 3.5 percent and potentially further to 3 percent in the next election. According to him, the 3.5–3 percent figure is a midpoint between the level of representation and governmental effectiveness. “If it reaches 7 percent, the impact is reduced representation. It’s not good enough for a pluralistic country,” said Arya.