2007 Bekasi regency election

The 2007 Bekasi regency election was held on 11 March 2007 to elect the regent of Bekasi to a five-year term. Former Bekasi regent Saleh Manaf and Wikanda Darmawijaya ran for a second term. The election was won by speaker of Bekasi Regional People's Representative Council Sa'duddin and former expert staff to Bekasi regent, Darip Mulyana.

2007 Bekasi regency election
← 2003 11 March 2007 2012 →
Turnout53.76%
 
Candidate Sa'duddin Memet Rochamat
Party PKS PDI-P
Running mate Darip Mulyana Jejen Sayuti
Popular vote 195,857 144,181
Percentage 25.05% 18.44%

Regent before election

Herry Koesaeri (acting)

Elected Regent

Sa'duddin
PKS

Background

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On 21 January 2004, former chief of Bekasi land agency Saleh Manaf was installed as the Regent of Bekasi[1] following an unexpected victory in an internal election held by Bekasi Regional People's Representative Council.[2] Two years later, he was deposed from his position after a successful legal challenge from his predecessor, Wikanda Darmawijaya, who claimed that Saleh failed to obtain his permission to run for election.[3] Saleh's removal from office triggered an election to fill the position.[4]

The election was the first direct regency election in Bekasi since the introduction of the 2005 local election law.[4]

Candidates

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This election was contested by six candidates together with their running mate.[4]

# Candidate Running mate Parties
1 Sa'duddin
Speaker of Bekasi Regional People's Representative Council (2004 – 2007)
Darip Mulyana
Expert Staff to the Regent of Bekasi
Prosperous Justice Party
2 Saleh Manaf
Regent of Bekasi (2004 – 2006)
Omin Basuki United Development Party
3 Memet Rochamat
Regional Secretary of Bekasi (1999 – 2003)
Jejen Sayuti
Member of Bekasi Regional People's Representative Council (2004 – 2009)
Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle
4 Wikanda Darmawijaya
Regent of Bekasi (1998 – 2004)
Daeng Muhammad
Member of Bekasi Regional People's Representative Council (2004 – 2009)
National Mandate Party
5 Nachrowi Solihin
Member of Bekasi Regional People's Representative Council (2004 – 2009)
Solihin Sari
Vice Regent of Bekasi (2004 – 2006)
Golkar
6 Munawar Fuad
Special Staff to the Minister of Communication and Informatics
Adhy Firdaus Democratic Party
National Awakening Party

Debate and election day

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Debates for the regency election was held on 1 March, with all six pairs attending the debate. The debate was moderated by communication expert Effendi Ghazali, with panelists including Anies Baswedan, Denny Indrayana, and Hadar Gumay.[5]

During the debate, the candidates faced criticism during a debate for starting late and having high-level, non-specific programs. The debate mostly focused on economic equality, investment support, poverty alleviation, public service improvement, employment, and affordable education.[6]

Elections were held simultaneously all over Bekasi on 11 March 2007, with polling stations opening at 7 AM. The police chief of Bekasi deployed 3,100 personnels to secure the election.[7]

Results

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The final results of the regency election were announced in a plenary session of the electoral commission on 16 March. The electoral desk of the Bekasi's regency office and the Sa'duddin-Darip team pair announced their own quick counts, with results similar to the final count. The final vote count process by the electoral commission were marred with protests from the losing candidates, with demands to stop the count.[8][9]

Sa'duddin and Darip Mulyana were declared as winners of the election, securing a majority in 15 out of 23 subdistricts in Bekasi. The pair also won a significant majority in densely populated subdistricts such as Cibitung, South Tambun, and North Tambun.[8][9][10]

CandidateRunning matePartyVotes%
Sa'duddinDarip MulyanaProsperous Justice Party195,85725.05
Wikanda DarmawijayaDaeng MuhammadNational Mandate Party87,31311.17
Saleh ManafOmin BasukiUnited Development Party143,24818.32
Memet RochamatJejen SayutiIndonesian Democratic Party of Struggle144,18118.44
Nachrowi SolihinSolihin SariGolongan Karya113,05814.46
Munawar FuadAdhy FirdausDemocratic Party-National Awakening Party98,08012.55
Total781,737100.00
Valid votes781,73799.28
Invalid/blank votes5,6730.72
Total votes787,410100.00
Registered voters/turnout1,459,36953.96
Source: Kompas (2007),[8] General Elections Commission[11]

Aftermath

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After the results were announced, the electoral commission handed over the results to the Bekasi Regional People's Representative Council on 23 March. A legal challenge was later filed by the campaign team of Memet Rochamat-Jejen Sayuti, alleging irregularities in the vote counting process. However, the case was rejected by the court due to a lack of evidence.[12] Sa'duddin-Darip was installed as regent and vice regent of Bekasi on 14 May 2007.[13]

The election process costed the Bekasi government an estimated 21,2 billion rupiahs.[14]

References

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  1. ^ PUTUSAN Nomor 004/SKLN-IV/2006
  2. ^ "Bukan Calon yang Diperhitungkan". Tempo. 19 January 2006. Retrieved 10 May 2024.
  3. ^ "Sidang SKLN Bupati Bekasi: 'Bupati Adalah Organ Konstitusi'". Hukum Online. 18 May 2006. Retrieved 10 May 2004.
  4. ^ a b c "Kabupaten Bekasi Gelar Pilkada". detiknews (in Indonesian). Retrieved 2024-07-28.
  5. ^ Siswanto (1 March 2007). "Hari Ini Debat Kandidat Pasangan Bupati Bekasi". Tempo. Retrieved 29 July 2024.
  6. ^ Siswanto (1 March 2007). "Debat Kandidat Bupati Bekasi Dikritik". Tempo. Retrieved 29 July 2024.
  7. ^ antaranews.com (2007-03-11). "Pilkada Bekasi, Wikanda Sementara Unggul di Empat Desa". Antara News (in Indonesian). Retrieved 2024-07-28.
  8. ^ a b c "Sa'duddin-Darip Menang: Sidang Pleno KPUD Bekasi Diwarnai Protes". Kompas. 16 March 2007. p. 28. Retrieved 29 July 2024.
  9. ^ a b "Pilkada Bekasi: KPUD Tetapkan Bupati dan Wakil Bupati Bekasi Terpilih". Kompas. 17 March 2007. p. 26. Retrieved 29 July 2024.
  10. ^ "PKS Menangkan Pilkada Bekasi". detiknews (in Indonesian). Retrieved 2024-07-28.
  11. ^ Pilkada 2007
  12. ^ "Pilkada Bekasi: KPUD Serahkan Berkas Penghitungan Suara ke DPRD". Kompas. 23 March 2007. p. 29. Retrieved 29 July 2024.
  13. ^ "Jagoan PKS Dilantik Jadi Bupati Bekasi". detiknews (in Indonesian). Retrieved 2024-07-28.
  14. ^ "Biaya Pemilihan Kepala Daerah Kabupaten Bekasi Rp 21,2 Miliar". Tempo. 2006-11-28. Retrieved 2024-07-28.