On January 20, 2026, Hurriyah, the Executive Director of the Center for Political Studies at the University of Indonesia (PUSKAPOL UI), attended a Public Hearing (RDPU) organized by Commission II of the Indonesian House of Representatives (DPR RI). Hurriyah attended as both a Political Science academic and the Director of PUSKAPOL UI to provide input regarding the design and strategic issues of the Revision of the Election Law.
During the hearing, Hurriyah emphasized that the discussion of the Election Law must go beyond technical changes to the voting system and must address the fundamental challenges in Indonesia’s current democratic practices.
Hurriyah stressed the urgency of improving the Election Law not just in technical aspects, but also in the substance of Indonesian democracy, which is increasingly being eroded. According to Hurriyah, the design of Indonesia’s electoral system has made progress and is often used as a reference in the Southeast Asian region. However, several serious challenges still hinder the quality of substantive democracy in Indonesia.
In addition to providing input on the electoral system design, Hurriyah also presented PUSKAPOL UI’s research findings on the urgency of strengthening women’s representation and protecting women’s political participation from electoral violence. The PUSKAPOL UI Policy Brief presented several key recommendations, including:
- Democratic oversight must be continuous – Hurriyah asserted that democracy cannot be sustained through elections alone. Oversight of power needs to be conducted continuously, not only intensifying before elections but also maintained post-election.
- Election Law revisions need to target structural issues – Revisions to the Election Law should not stop at technical changes to the electoral system. Hurriyah emphasized the importance of improving aspects of political representation, sustainable citizen engagement, and the function of political institutions to be more responsive to public needs.
- Serious challenges to the quality of Indonesian democracy – Although electoral mechanisms proceed procedurally, Hurriyah noted that the quality of Indonesian democracy still faces pressure. True democracy must be supported by civil liberties, effective oversight, and strong checks and balances mechanisms.
Several other important points presented by Hurriyah during the hearing included:
- Democratic oversight must be continuous. Democracy cannot be sustained through elections alone. Oversight of power needs to be conducted continuously, not only intensifying before elections but also maintained post-election.
- Revisions to the Election Law need to target structural issues, rather than stopping at technical changes to the electoral system. Hurriyah emphasized the importance of improving aspects of political representation. These structural issues relate to sustainable citizen engagement and the function of political institutions to be more responsive to public needs.
- Serious challenges to the quality of Indonesian democracy. Although electoral mechanisms proceed procedurally, the quality of Indonesian democracy still faces pressure. True democracy must be supported by civil liberties, effective oversight, and strong checks and balances mechanisms.
This presentation was delivered during a Public Hearing (RDPU) with the Indonesian House of Representatives on January 20, 2026, as part of PUSKAPOL UI’s academic input for the discussion on the Revision of the Election Law. PUSKAPOL UI’s presence in this forum reaffirms its commitment to encouraging electoral reforms that not only improve procedures but also strengthen substantive democracy in Indonesia.
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Read the full PUSKAPOL UI Policy Brief regarding this issue on this page.
