Legal Strengthening for Independent Candidates in Regional Head Elections

Legal strengthening for independent candidates in the Regional Head Election (Pilkada) is a strategic effort to ensure equal political rights for every citizen as mandated by Article 27 paragraph (1) and Article 28D paragraph (3) of the 1945 Constitution of the Republic of Indonesia. Independent candidates play a role in expanding public participation as well as being an alternative to suppress the dominance of political parties in the nomination process. This study uses a normative juridical method with a legislative, conceptual approach, and a study of Constitutional Court decisions, which examines the dynamics of regulations from Law Number 32 of 2004 to Law Number 10 of 2016. The types of legal materials used are primary, secondary, and tertiary legal materials. Data collection was carried out by means of literature studies. As an analysis method, this study uses qualitative descriptive analysis techniques. The results of the study show that although the independent path has been legally recognized, independent candidates still face obstacles such as high support requirements, limited campaign access, and resistance from political parties. Therefore, legal strengthening is needed through reformulating proportional support requirements, utilizing information technology for verification, and providing effective legal protection against political obstacles. These steps, coupled with adequate political education, are expected to create fair and inclusive political competition and strengthen the quality of local democracy.

Independent Candidates, Legal Strengthening, Regional Head Elections.