The Jakarta Globe, Jakarta – Former President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo has confirmed that he formally joined the Indonesian political party PSI on Oct. 14, 2025, ending months of speculation over his political ties with the party led by his youngest son, Kaesang Pangarep.
Jokowi, who served as president from 2014 to 2024, displayed his physical PSI membership card during a party coordination meeting in Bandung, West Java, on Saturday.
"I have been part of the PSI family since Oct. 14, 2025. It has been almost a year. Many people did not believe it, so I will show my membership card now," Jokowi said, according to Antara.
He also read aloud the name and membership number printed on the card to demonstrate that his membership was official.
The confirmation puts an end to months of uncertainty over Jokowi's formal relationship with PSI. His political closeness to the party had become increasingly apparent, particularly after he attended the party's July 2025 congress in Solo, where Kaesang was reelected as chairman.
At the time, Jokowi delivered a strong endorsement of the party but stopped short of publicly confirming that he had joined.
At PSI's national working meeting in Makassar in January 2026, the party appointed Jokowi as a political patron and a leading figure in its campaign efforts. He subsequently pledged to campaign aggressively at the grassroots level to help PSI win seats in the House of Representatives in the 2029 election.
PSI, founded in 2014, failed to enter the House after the 2024 election because it won less than the 4% parliamentary threshold. Jokowi has nevertheless expressed confidence that the party can cross the threshold in 2029.
"PSI is still a nonparliamentary party, so the most important thing is for everyone to work hard," Jokowi said in Solo on Thursday.
Asked whether he was optimistic about PSI entering parliament in 2029, he replied, "Optimistic, optimistic, optimistic."
Threshold remains undecided
Jokowi also commented on an ongoing debate over the parliamentary threshold for the 2029 election. Political parties have discussed possible thresholds ranging from 5% to 7%, although no figure has been finalized. Jokowi said the decision should be left to the House, its political factions, and the government.
"Whatever the figure, I think it should be what is best for the country. Five percent is fine, 6% is fine, 7% is fine, 8% is fine," he said.
Recent polling indicates that PSI remains below the parliamentary threshold, although its support varies among surveys.
Poltracking Indonesia's August 2026 survey put PSI's support at 2.3%, while an Indonesia Political Opinion survey conducted from July 27 to Aug. 3 put the party at 1.9%.
The party has argued that Jokowi's formal membership could strengthen its prospects ahead of the 2029 election. PSI Deputy Chairman Endang Tirtana described Jokowi's entry as an important moment for the party and a catalyst for its campaign.
The possibility of Jokowi giving PSI a stronger electoral boost had also been discussed by pollster Djayadi Hanan, executive director of the Indonesian Survey Institute (LSI), who previously said Jokowi's explicit placement within the party's leadership or advisory structure could potentially increase its electoral support.
Source: https://jakartaglobe.id/news/jokowi-confirms-psi-membership-after-months-of-speculatio