HNW Proposes Stembus Accord Mechanism for DPR, Cites 1999 Election as Precedent
NasDem chairman Surya Paloh has proposed raising the parliamentary threshold to 7 per cent, whilst Deputy Speaker of the People’s Consultative Assembly (MPR) from the PKS faction, Hidayat Nur Wahid (HNW), has put forward the use of a Stembus Accord mechanism.
Hidayat initially stated that the threshold issue must refer to Constitutional Court (MK) rulings. He also reminded stakeholders that the formulation of a new threshold should take into account the simplification of political parties.
“If there is a desire to eliminate the threshold entirely, that would contradict the Constitutional Court’s ruling which calls for the simplification of political parties,” Hidayat told reporters on Tuesday (24 February 2026).
He argued that abolishing the threshold could potentially contravene the Court’s ruling requiring the simplification of political parties in parliament. However, he expressed concern that raising the threshold would result in large numbers of voters’ ballots failing to convert into seats in the DPR.
“If it goes above 4 per cent, let alone up to 7 per cent or higher, that would also bring about what the Constitutional Court has ruled against — namely, many constituencies going unrepresented in the DPR, or many votes being lost because the parliamentary threshold is not met,” he said.
He considered 4 per cent to be a moderate figure but noted that the Constitutional Court had asked the DPR to amend it.
“The fact is that with 4 per cent, around nine or ten political parties can still enter the DPR, and these are parties that relatively represent the diversity of political ideological backgrounds in Indonesia,” he said.
Stembus Accord Proposal
HNW then proposed returning to the Stembus Accord mechanism as used in the 1999 elections. He explained that the concept allows political parties that fail to meet the threshold to merge with parties that do meet it within a single faction.
“But it would also be good to open up a new opportunity, by referring to the Constitutional Court’s ruling — namely, removing the parliamentary threshold whilst also achieving the simplification of political parties in the DPR, or faction groupings in the DPR, by implementing the Stembus Accord as was done in 1999,” he explained.
“That is, parties that do not reach the parliamentary threshold but hold seats in the DPR can join with other parties so that their seats are not lost,” he added.
He cited the experience of the Justice Party (PK) in 1999, which won only seven seats and did not meet the threshold at the time. He said those seats were not simply forfeited, as PK merged with PAN to form the Reform Faction.
“PK did not disappear; its seven seats were not lost, because the law allowed us to merge through a Stembus Accord with another party. In that context, we merged into a faction with PAN and became the Reform Faction — we became 41 seats in the DPR,” he recounted.
He suggested this could serve as a middle ground worth considering, noting that the proposal could also be aligned with the Constitutional Court’s ruling.
“On one hand, the parliamentary threshold would be corrected, but at the same time there would be simplification of political parties in the DPR without eliminating votes that have produced seats through the Stembus Accord,” he said.
Surya Paloh had previously stated that NasDem would remain consistent in pushing for the parliamentary threshold to be raised to 7 per cent. Paloh considered a 7 per cent threshold far more effective.
“I think NasDem should just stay consistent on that. Unless there are very significant changes. In any case, NasDem honestly believes that, from a multi-party system, if we could shift to a selected party system, that would be far more effective — both for maintaining governmental stability and for implementing the benefits of the democratic freedoms we possess,” Paloh said at NasDem Tower, Menteng, Central Jakarta, on Saturday (21 February).
Paloh went on to question the proliferation of political parties, asking what purpose democracy serves if it does not bring tangible benefits.
“So it should give us pause for reflection. We have been too enthusiastic about the large number of political parties, all in the name of democracy itself,” he said.
Constitutional Court Ruling
The Constitutional Court struck down the 4 per cent threshold for DPR elections through ruling number 116/PUU-XXI/2023. The Court ordered that a new threshold be finalised before the 2029 elections.
The Court also provided guidance for formulating the new threshold, stipulating that it must:
- Be designed for sustainable, ongoing use;
- Ensure that changes to the parliamentary threshold norm, including the numerical figure or percentage, remain within the framework of maintaining the proportionality of the proportional electoral system, particularly to prevent large numbers of votes from failing to convert into DPR seats;
- Be positioned within the objective of achieving political party simplification;
- Be completed before the commencement of the 2029 election stages; and
- Involve all stakeholders with an interest in election administration, applying the principle of meaningful public participation, including political parties contesting elections that do not hold representation in the DPR.