NasDem Cadres in Yogyakarta Massively Switch to PSI
Several officials from the NasDem Party in Yogyakarta have moved to the Indonesian Solidarity Party (PSI) for reasons of obtaining more strategic and promising positions.
The Secretary of the Gunung Kidul Regional Leadership Council of the NasDem Party in the Special Region of Yogyakarta, Agustinus Sujatmo, now officially serves as the Chairman of the PSI Gunung Kidul Regional Leadership Council in accordance with a decree from the PSI Central Executive Board, signed by PSI General Chairman Kaesang Pangarep and General Secretary Raja Juli Antoni. The decree was issued on 16 April 2026 in Jakarta.
“I moved because PSI provides a more strategic political space to grow the party,” Agustinus said when contacted by telephone on Wednesday, 29 April 2026.
Agustinus stated that he was interested in joining PSI because he had known several officials, including the PSI Central Executive Board’s Daily Chairman Ahmad Ali and former Gunung Kidul Regent Sunaryanta, who now serves as the Chairman of the PSI Yogyakarta Special Region Regional Leadership Council. He also met with the PSI Central Leadership Council General Chairman Kaesang Pangarep during a coordination meeting of the PSI Yogyakarta Special Region Regional Leadership Council in Gunung Kidul.
After taking office as Chairman of the PSI Gunung Kidul Regional Leadership Council, Agustinus brought along some NasDem cadres to fill PSI’s structure. Nearly half of the leadership positions are filled by former NasDem cadres.
He denied moving to PSI due to offers of funding for candidacy as a legislative member. Before joining PSI, Agustinus had served as Secretary of the NasDem Regional Leadership Council for ten years. He had also served as Secretary of the PDI-Perjuangan Gunung Kidul Branch Leadership Council for nine years before switching to NasDem.
The Chairman of the PSI Yogyakarta Special Region Regional Leadership Council, Sunaryanta, said that PSI has overhauled its party structure from the village to the provincial level. He has recruited several senior and experienced politicians, one of whom is from NasDem and popular among the grassroots, to boost votes in the 2029 General Election. In addition to Gunung Kidul, Sunaryanta has also recruited NasDem cadres from Bantul and several politicians from other major parties.
According to him, Agustinus has a long track record as a political activist. Under his leadership, NasDem Gunung Kidul was able to secure eight seats in the Gunung Kidul Regional People’s Representative Council. “His network is strong,” Sunaryanta said.
The Chairman of the Election Winning Body of the NasDem Yogyakarta Special Region Regional Leadership Council, Aulia Reza Bastian, said that the movement of NasDem cadres to other parties is something normal. The reasons for NasDem cadres migrating to other parties, according to him, vary. Some cadres move due to offers of promising positions, internal disputes, offers of logistical support, and alignment of aspirations.
“What breaks grows, what is lost is replaced. We have the best replacement cadres,” Aulia said.
Aulia did not deny that senior politicians who move carry influence over constituents who follow suit. Nevertheless, NasDem has internal mechanisms to revitalise its leadership structure. NasDem also recruits militant cadres from other parties. Across the entire Special Region of Yogyakarta, NasDem secured a total of 21 seats. “We still have enough time to recover the party’s work,” he said.