Indonesia’s President-elect Prabowo secures parliamentary majority

JAKARTA – Indonesian President-elect Prabowo Subianto has secured a parliamentary majority after the party that backed his rival in the February election announced it is joining his big-tent coalition.

The NasDem Party, which accounts for about 10 per cent of Parliament, announced late on Aug 15 that it would support the incoming administration of Mr Prabowo.

The move will give the Prabowo government control over Parliament, boosting its stake from 43 per cent to 52 per cent.

The parliamentary majority is expected to smooth legislative processes, including the approval of the 2025 budget, which outgoing President Joko Widodo will announce on Aug 16.

Mr Prabowo and Vice-President-elect Gibran Rakabuming Raka, who is Mr Widodo’s eldest son, will be sworn into office on Oct 20.

Nasdem chief Surya Paloh told reporters on Aug 15 that his decision to join Mr Prabowo would foster a “calmer and more optimistic” atmosphere and ease the work of the incoming administration.

After meeting Mr Paloh, Mr Prabowo said: “We agree to cooperate and collaborate to face challenges in the future. Unity is the key to a nation’s success.”

Mr Prabowo, whose coalition includes five political parties, is also in talks with the country’s largest Islamic party, which has a 10 per cent parliamentary share.

NasDem previously backed former Jakarta governor Anies Baswedan, a vocal government critic, who was defeated by Mr Prabowo in the 2023 presidential election.

The party’s decision to join Mr Prabowo has led it to withdraw its support for Mr Anies’ bid for Jakarta governor in November.

Mr Widodo’s youngest son Kaesang has in recent weeks been touted as a possible candidate for the post of governor in Jakarta or Central Java.

Mr Anies, who polls show is the front runner in the Jakarta race, has been struggling to find enough parties to support his bid.

Mr Anies told Reuters this week that “despite the pressure”, he was optimistic he would ultimately secure the backing of parties with the required threshold of 20 per cent of seats in the regional Parliament.

The developments follow

the shock resignation at the weekend of Mr Airlangga Hartarto

as head of Golkar, Indonesia’s second-largest political party, which is also in Mr Prabowo’s camp.

It was expected that Mr Airlangga, an ally of Mr Widodo and Mr Prabowo, would retain chairmanship of the party until its planned December congress. Instead, that congress will be held next week, when a new party chair will be elected.

Analysts say that Mr Widodo, after a decade in office, is seeking control over Golkar to retain influence after he steps down. REUTERS