Titi Anggraini testifying as an expert for the Relevant Party for case No. 28/PHPU.BUP-XXIII/2025 on the 2024 North Barito regent election results dispute, Friday (2/14/2025). Photo by MKRI/Ifa.

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JAKARTA (MKRI) — On Friday, February 14, 2025, the Constitutional Court (MK) held an evidentiary hearing for Case No. 28/PHPU.BUP-XXIII/2025 on the 2024 North Barito regent election results dispute. Chief Justice Suhartoyo presided over the evidentiary hearing alongside Constitutional Justices Daniel Yusmic P. Foekh and M. Guntur Hamzah in panel 1 courtroom, which featured the examination of witnesses and experts.

Radian Syam, an expert for the Petitioners, cited Article 34 paragraph (6) of the Bawaslu (Elections Supervisory Body) Regulation No. 9 of 2024, which stipulates that if recommendations regarding alleged election administration violations, which are directed to the provincial KPU, regency/city KPU, district election committee (PPK), polling committee (PPS), or election candidates, are not followed up within seven days after the submission, the provincial and/or regency/city Bawaslu must issue a verbal or written warning using A.14.1 form.

This case was filed by regent-vice regent Candidate Pair 2 Akhmad Gunadi Nadalsyah and Sastra Jaya (Petitioners). Candidate Pair 1 Gogo Purman Jaya and Hendro Nakalelo are the Relevant Party, while the North Barito KPU (Elections Commission) is the Respondent.

Radian also cited Article 19 of the KPU Regulation No. 17 of 2024 concerning voting and vote counting in the regional head elections, which outlines three categories of eligible voters, one of which is possession of an electronic resident ID card.

Radian argued that the KPPS’s (polling station working committee) failure to check voters’ resident ID cards, which the Petitioners’ alleged, constituted a regulatory violation. So was the North Barito Bawaslu KPU’s disregard of Bawaslu’s recommendation for a revote.

“The North Barito KPU clearly disregarded the North Barito Bawaslu’s recommendation, citing it as contradictory to the law and using a Central KPU official letter to justify their decision,” Radian explained.

The Respondent’s expert, former Central KPU chairman Hasyim Asy’ari, offered a different perspective, asserting that the North Barito KPU had acted on the North Barito Bawaslu’s recommendation.

Citing Articles 4 and 5 of the KPU Regulation No. 15 of 2024 on the procedure for resolving administrative violations in the regional head election, Hasyim explained that the North Barito KPU was required to first prepare a legal review, which would then be decided at a plenary meeting.

“The North Barito KPU’s legal review and subsequent letter to the North Barito Bawaslu were considered a follow-up to the recommendation,” Hasyim asserted.

The Relevant Party’s expert Bambang Eka Cahya Widodo shared the same view. He explained that the Respondent’s decision not to conduct a revote, which was recommended by the North Barito Regency Bawaslu, was justifiable given that no unregistered voters were found.

“As the criteria for a revote under Article 112 paragraph 2 were not met, the revote could not be implemented,” Bambang asserted.

Voters Without ID Cards

Voters without resident ID cards participated at TPS (polling station) 04 in Malawaken Village. The Petitioners’ witness Pengsi testified that, from the time the polling station had opened, the KPPS allowed approximately one hundred voters without resident ID cards to cast votes.

“Between 7:30 and 9:00 am, at least a hundred [voters cast their votes],” Pengsi explained.

Around 10:00 local time, the district supervisory committee suspended the voting. Despite this, the Petitioners’ mandated witness Pengsi signed the C-form at the polling station without raising an objection.

The Petitioners raised the objection at the regency level during the vote recapitulation, as explained by their mandated witness Jubendri Lusfernando. He described the incident at TPS 04 Malawaken in the special incident form and refused to sign the district-level vote recapitulation results.

“We followed the district-level recapitulation on December 3, [2024],” stated Jubendri.

“[Did you] sign it?” questioned Chief Justice Suhartoyo.

“[I did] not sign it due to the special incident that had occurred,” responded Jubendri.

The Relevant Party’s witness Tau, a Malawaken Village resident, confirmed that he and several others had just finished farming and did not have their resident ID cards with them.

“That morning, as I went farming, I realized it was the governor and regent election day,” explained Tau.

The Respondent’s witness, a KPPS member at TPS 04 Malawaken, had admitted to the incident, but clarified that only 15 out of 70 voters had cast votes without resident ID cards.

When the district supervisory committee warned the KPPS members, voters without resident ID cards were not permitted to vote unless they presented their resident ID cards at the registration desk of the polling station.

“We followed the district supervisory committee’s suggestions and warnings until the polling station closed,” stated the Respondent’s witness Sayudi, a KPPS member. 

Sayudi’s testimony on the number of voters without resident ID cards conflicted with the North Barito Bawaslu data from district supervisory report of TPS 04 Malawaken, which indicated 13 voters had voted without resident ID cards.

The North Barito Bawaslu issued a recommendation for a revote to the North Barito KPU on December 3, 2024, the day before the district vote recapitulation. The North Barito KPU responded that a revote could not be conducted.

“The North Barito KPU responded with a letter essentially stating that they believed the incident did not meet the criteria under Article 112,” explained North Barito Bawaslu chairman Adam Parawansa Shahbubakar.

Ballot Box Reopened Due to Vote Counting Error

A vote counting error occurred at TPS 01 in Melayu District. Discrepancies existed between the KPU’s vote recapitulation information system (Sirekap) C-result form, which shows 437 voters, and the Petitioners’ C-result copy, indicating 439 voters.

The Petitioners’ mandated witness raised an objection to the PPK during the district vote recapitulation, which was responded with a recount. The ballot box for said polling station was reopened, resulting in additional votes for the Relevant Party.

“After reopening the ballot box, the votes for Candidate Pair 1 increased from 280 to 281, while that of Candidate Pair 2 remained at 149,” explained Jubendri Lusfernando, the Petitioners’ witness.

It was also found that the total votes were 440, including 10 invalid votes and 162 unused ballots. The C-copy was based on these findings, but the KPU Sirekap data were later changed.

“During Sirekap data entry, the PPK reduced the votes count from 10 to 7, and the unused ballot was supposedly 162 instead of 165,” added Jubendri.

The Respondent’s witness, Central Teweh PPK member Arbianto Wahyu Saputra, who supervised TPS 01 of Melayu, admitted to the ballot box reopening, stating that it was conducted based on prevailing regulations.

The differences between the updated C-result and the data on Sirekap were said to be for data finalization, and did not change the vote results for the candidate pairs.

“The data correction for Sirekap was indeed for data finalization, and we made corrections without changing the votes for the two candidates,” clarified Arbianto.

The North Barito Bawaslu stated that while the Petitioners reported this incident, the report was not investigated further because it did not meet the material requirements. They also stated that the district supervisory committee had already provided a suggestion for improvement.

“The PPK already followed up by conducting a revote,” stated Amir Mahmud, legal division coordinator of the North Barito Bawaslu.

The testimony from the parties concluded the hearing, which will be followed by a ruling hearing on February 24, 2025. No further evidence submission or evidence review will be permitted.

Also read:

North Barito Regency Candidates Allege Voting Issues

North Barito KPU Denies Voter Disenfranchisement

At the preliminary hearing on Monday, January 13, 2025, the Petitioners argued numerous violations in the 2024 North Barito Regency election results dispute, including several voters not showing their ID cards losing their voting rights, and the polling stations being closed prematurely. Another issue raised by the Petitioners was the unlawful double voting, which was caused by leftover ballot papers being distributed to the witnesses at TPS 01 of Karendan Village, Lahei District.

Therefore, the Petitioners requested that the Court annul the North Barito KPU decree on the certification of the 2024 regent election results. They also requested the Court to order KPU to carry out a revote in four locations: TPS 04 of Malawaken Village in Teweh Baru District, TPS 01 of Karendan Village in Lahei District, TPS 01 of Melayu Village in Central Teweh District, and TPS 12 of Melayu Village in Central Teweh District.

Also read:

The Petition for Case No. 28/PHPU.BUP-XXIII/2025

Statement by the Relevant Party

Response by the Respondent

Statement by Bawaslu
 

Author                : Ashri Fadilla
Editor                 : N. Rosi
PR                    : Fauzan Febriyan
Translator          : Ryan Alfian/Yuniar Widiastuti (NL) (RA)

Disclaimer: The original version of the news is in Indonesian. In case of any differences between the English and the Indonesian versions, the Indonesian version will prevail.

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