Political dynamics of women's representation: 30% affirmative action governance in Bungo Regency

Abstract

This study aims to analyze the implementation of Law Number 7 of 2017 concerning General Elections, strategies implemented by political parties, and supporting and inhibiting factors in the affirmative action quota of 30% women's representation in Bungo Regency, Jambi, in the 2024 elections. The background of this study is based on the fact that female DPRD members in Bungo Regency are only 14.3%, which is relatively low. The successful implementation of the affirmative quota policy of 30% women's representation in the general election requirements has been administratively supported by the active participation of women as legislative candidates in strengthening the principle of gender equality in the local political ecosystem. This study uses a qualitative descriptive method with a case study approach. Data collection techniques were carried out through in-depth interviews with the General Election Commission, 5 political parties, and 5 elected female DPRD members for the 2024-2029 period from the PKB faction, the Gerindra Party, the Nasdem Party, the Democratic Party, and the Golkar Party. Data were collected from various literature, written documents, and field research through observation and in-depth interviews. This study employed four stages of data analysis: data collection, data reduction, data presentation, and data verification. The results indicate that the five parties met the 30% quota for women's representation, and the other participating parties in the election, as stipulated in Law Number 7 of 2017 concerning General Elections in Bungo Regency, had fulfilled the administrative requirements declared by the General Elections Commission. However, the number of women actually elected as members of the Bungo Regency Regional People's Representative Council remains far from proportional. This is due to the open proportional system in elections based on the majority vote, which hinders female candidates from being hindered by the practice of money politics, the existence of gender-biased religious groups, the quality of human resources of irrational voters, patriarchal culture, and local primordialism.