School of Politics and International Studies

Local Politics in Indonesia

My research explores the political changes that have occurred at the local level in Indonesia after the end of president Suharto's New Order in 1998. The aim is to examine who has gained and maintained local power and how they have done so. Existing research has often emphasised the initial continuity at the local level after 1999: while political processes changed, the kind of people in power did not. Thus entrenched New Order bureaucrats and retired military officers occupied many of the local executive offices, such as gubernur (governors), walikota (mayors), or bupati (district heads), in the early reform years.

However, in the wake of decentralisation and democratisation, these entrenched elites did have to adjust to new processes of power acquisition (first indirect, then direct elections) and contend with political parties and newly-ambitious politicians. One of the changes that has been observed is the increasing influence of wealthy businesspeople in national and local politics. There has been little research on whether and how new political processes have brought about such change in the type of power holders, or whether it has changed the power holders themselves.

In particular, the research focusses on the prevalence of 'money politics' (political corruption, vote-buying, etc...) as a process and entrepreneurs as potential power holders. It explores the changing nature of 'money politics' and how it relates to the power holders in local politics in Indonesia since the end of the New Order. While money has always played a role in politics in Indonesia, both legitimately and illegitimately, there are indications that the kind and scope of money politics has changed significantly.

Institutions, both formal and informal, play a key role in shaping the strategies of political actors, in determining the success of particular kinds of actors and thus the overall dynamics of local politics. However, these institutions themselves also change and evolve. The continuity and change of formal and informal institutions since 1999 also form part of the research, especially relating to the wide-reaching decentralisation and democratisation efforts, but also the persistence of norms and expectations relating to 'money politics'.

Empirically, the research focuses on two areas of Indonesia: West Java and Bengkulu. By comparing the developments in these two provinces, and particular cases within them, the research aims to gain an insight into the changes in local politics in Indonesia in general, and the nature of 'money politics' and institutional persistence and change.