Petitioners during the Hearing on the Revision of the Petition in Case Number 247/PUU-XXIII/2025 concerning the Judicial Review of Law Number 7 of 2017 on General Elections, Thursday (8 January 2026). Humas/Bay

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JAKARTA, MKRI – The Constitutional Court (Mahkamah Konstitusi/MK) held a follow-up hearing on a petition filed by three female university students—Maya Novita Sari, Cahya Camila Evanglin, and Putri Tania Rahmadani—on Thursday (8 January 2026). The Petitioners are challenging Article 245 of Law Number 7 of 2017 on General Elections (Election Law), as most recently amended by Law Number 7 of 2023 concerning the Stipulation of Government Regulation in Lieu of Law Number 1 of 2022 on Amendments to Law Number 7 of 2017 on General Elections.

At the second hearing, which was agendaed to hear the key points of the revised petition in Case Number 247/PUU-XXIII/2025, Cahya stated that the Petitioners had further clarified the constitutional harm they suffered due to the defective legal basis of the challenged provision from the outset. The Petitioners also sought to align their legal standingwith the posita of the petition by elaborating on how the challenged norm contradicts the Constitution.

“We have also revised the Constitutional Court Regulation (PMK) reference, replacing PMK 2/2021 with PMK 7/2025. We added the philosophical foundation of the 30 percent quota for women’s representation as guaranteed by the 1945 Constitution. Sociologically, in electoral practice, political parties that violate the quota are still allowed to participate, resulting in the failure to achieve meaningful women’s representation in parliament,” Cahya explained during the hearing, which she attended virtually.

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Petitioners Seek Sanctions for Non-Compliance with Women’s Representation in Elections

During the Preliminary Hearing on Wednesday (17 December 2025), the Petitioners argued that Article 245 of Law Number 7 of 2017 explicitly mandates a minimum 30 percent women’s representation in legislative candidate lists. However, the norm has lost its coercive character because it does not provide for explicit sanctions against violators. Due to the absence of sanctions, the General Elections Commission (KPU) has interpreted the 30 percent quota merely as an administrative requirement, rather than as a legally binding condition for the validity of candidacy. As a result, political parties that fail to meet the quota are frequently approved.

Consequently, voters are compelled to cast their votes for candidate lists that do not comply with statutory requirements, thereby undermining the integrity of voters’ electoral rights. 

According to the Petitioners, this situation erodes the purity of the exercise of popular sovereignty, which should be guaranteed under Article 1 paragraph (2) of the 1945 Constitution.

The Petitioners’ primary concern in filing the judicial review, Cahya Camila Evanglin explained, lies in the absence of a firm and adequate sanction mechanism for political parties or election organizers that fail to comply with the minimum 30 percent women’s representation requirement in prospective candidate lists.

“This harm is both actual and potential due to the weakening of law enforcement, which directly causes the Petitioners, as voters, to lose their right to fair treatment, equality before the law, and equal opportunities to obtain adequate representation by female legislators,” Cahya stated during the virtual hearing.

Accordingly, in their petitum, the Petitioners request the Court to declare Article 245 of Law Number 7 of 2017 on General Elections, as last amended by Law Number 7 of 2023, contrary to the 1945 Constitution and legally non-binding, insofar as it is not interpreted to mean:

“The list of prospective candidates as referred to in Article 243 shall contain women’s representation of at least 30 percent (thirty percent). In the event that the list of prospective candidates does not meet this requirement, the KPU, Provincial KPU, and Regency/Municipal KPU shall reject the registration of prospective candidates submitted by the relevant political party in the respective electoral district.”

Author         : Mimi Kartika
Editor          : Lulu Anjarsari P.
PR               : Andhini Sayu 
Translator     : SO

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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