Saan: Idea of NasDem and Gerindra Merger Has Not Been Discussed in Depth

NasDem deputy general chairman Saan Mustopa stated that his party’s internal discussions have not yet delved deeper into the idea of merging with Gerindra Party. According to the Deputy Chairman of the House of Representatives, the party has many considerations before deciding to merge with another party.

Saan claimed that the party is still focused on consolidating internally, rather than following up on the merger idea with Gerindra Party. “So regarding the discourse on fusion, it has not yet become a more in-depth discussion internally,” he said at the DPR complex in Jakarta on Monday, 13 April 2026.

This week’s Tempo magazine edition revealed that President Prabowo Subianto, also the General Chairman of Gerindra Party, proposed to NasDem General Chairman Surya Paloh to merge the two parties. The idea emerged after they met at Prabowo’s residence in Hambalang, Bogor, West Java, in mid-February 2026.

If the idea materialises, the merger of the two parties would gather nearly 35 million national votes or 23 percent based on the 2024 election results. According to three senior NasDem officials, Surya did not welcome the proposal because he wants to maintain his position and has not seen any benefits of the merger for NasDem.

Saan admitted to being surprised by the information. He avoided calling the issue of the two parties’ merger a merger or acquisition, instead using fusion as the official term.

Saan opined that merging two parties is a reasonable idea, especially since it happened in 1973. Compared to that time, he assessed that the current merger idea for the two parties is more difficult to realise due to differences in party philosophies.

“For example, regarding the context of ideology, context of identity, party existence, because building or founding each party, the respective founders certainly have idealism and ideas in different contexts,” he stated.