Andi Adam Faturahman, Jakarta – The Constitutional Court has issued a ruling in Case Number 126/PUU-XXII/2024 which challenged Article 54D paragraph 3 of Law Number 10 of 2016 concerning Regional Head Elections (Pilkada). Chief Justice MK Suhartoyo said this article contradicted the 1945 Constitution and lacked a clear provision for rerun elections.
In its decision, the Court mandates a rerun election if a blank ballot or an empty box emerges as the winner or secures the highest number of votes among the competing candidate pairs.
"The subsequent election must be conducted within a maximum of one year from the date of the initial vote. The elected regional head/deputy regional head resulting from this rerun election will serve until the inauguration of the regional head and deputy regional head elected in the following simultaneous election, provided it does not exceed a five-year term from the date of inauguration," Suhartoyo explained during the verdict pronouncement on Thursday, November 14, 2024.
On Friday, November 8, the General Election Commission (KPU) proposed that regions with blank ballot victories be led by acting officials. For the 2024 regional elections, KPU Chair Mochammad Afifuddin later confirmed that a rerun election would be held the following year, likely in September 2025.
Afif claimed that the matter had been discussed with the House of Representatives (DPR) Commission overseeing government affairs. He also indicated that discussions regarding the rerun election's stages would commence after the conclusion of the 2024 regional election contestation process.
Ahmad Doli Kurnia Tandjung, former Chair of the DPR Commission on Government Affairs, expressed agreement with the KPU's proposal to schedule the rerun election on September 25, 2025. Doli emphasized that the Commission had previously determined that a rerun election resulting from a blank ballot victory should not exceed one year from the initial vote.
In the 2024 regional elections, the KPU recorded 37 regions with only one candidate. The Association for Elections and Democracy (Perludem) noted that this figure represents the highest number of single-candidate local elections since the 2015 Regional Elections.
– Alfitria Neti contributed to the writing of this article