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House of old men: 2024 election sees lowest number of young lawmakers
Dynastic politics and incumbents are blamed as two key reasons young politicians have struggled to gain seats in the House of Representatives, according to a recent study by the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS).
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House of Representatives deputy speaker Sufmi Dasco Ahmad of the Gerindra Party (center) presides a plenary session at the Senayan legislative complex in Jakarta on March 5, 2024. (Antara/Galih Pradipta)
The number of young lawmakers elected to the House of Representatives hit an all-time low in the 2024 legislative election, a recent study has found, with an increasing number of incumbents and political dynasties blamed among factors barring youths from gaining seats in the legislative body.
The study, conducted by the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) and publicly launched on Wednesday, found 87 lawmakers under the age of 40, making up only 15 percent of all elected legislative candidates in the 2024 election.
The figure was 1 percent lower than in the 2019 election and the lowest in the country’s history. Overall, the average age of elected legislative candidates this year is 52 years old.
For the study, CSIS researchers looked at the General Elections Commission’s (KPU) tabulation result for the legislative elections and estimated the number of seats obtained by each party using the Sainte-Laguë method. The researchers also looked at candidates with the most votes from each party in every election district.
The KPU’s final result on the number of seats obtained by each party at the House will not be released until the Constitutional Court settles all legislative election dispute petitions, with the process slated to run until June.
The low number of elected young politicians comes in an election that saw younger generations, comprising millennials and Gen-Zers, make up more than half of registered voters.
The Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) came out on top in the legislative race with 16.7 percent of total national votes, followed by the Golkar Party (15.3 percent) and the Gerindra Party (13.2 percent).
