The Campaign Journey of Three Presidential Candidates, from Dialogue, "Gemoy", Overnight, to Tiktok

The presidential and vice presidential candidates implemented various strategies throughout the 2024 election campaign period which reached 75 days.

The following article was translated using both Microsoft Azure Open AI and Google Translation AI. The original article can be found in Perjalanan Kampanye Tiga Capres, dari Dialog, ”Gemoy”, Bermalam, hingga Tiktok

KOMPAS/RONY ARIYANTO NUGROHO

Three pairs of presidential and vice presidential candidates took to the stage together and shook hands after the fifth round of the Presidential Candidate Debate for the 2024 Elections at the Jakarta Convention Center on Sunday (4/2/2023).

The three presidential and vice-presidential candidates have reached the end of their campaign period on Saturday (10/2/2024), before entering the calm period from Sunday (11/2/2024) until the voting day on Wednesday (14/2/2024). Various strategies were shown by each candidate pair during the 75-day campaign period, ranging from dialoguing with the people to utilizing digital platforms such as Tiktok.

The General Election Commission (KPU) determined the three presidential and vice presidential candidate pairs on November 13 2023. The day after that, the serial numbers for the presidential/cawapres candidates were drawn which resulted in: Anies Baswedan-Muhaimin Iskandar serial number 1, Prabowo Subianto-Gibran Rakabuming Raka serial number 2, and Ganjar Pranowo-Mahfud MD serial number 3.

Anies, by bringing the jargon of change to the 2024 Election, started his campaign on Tuesday (28/11/2023) in Kampung Tanah Merah, North Jakarta. The location was chosen because during his tenure as Governor of DKI Jakarta in 2017-2022, many changes occurred in the village. Meanwhile, Muhaimin started his campaign in Sidoarjo, East Java.

Entering December 2023, Anies-Muhaimin began targeting the Prabowo voter base, such as in Bogor, Bandung, and Karawang, West Java. Anies utilized his signature style of mingling with the public, including visiting Rengasdengklok Market, to listen to the complaints of traders and buyers. He also met with students at the Nurussalam Modern Islamic Boarding School in Karawang.

The prominent campaign style of Anies is the "Desak Anies" program, which has been launched since his candidacy for president. The dialogical and unscripted campaign targets young people. They have the opportunity to ask Anies directly on stage. Even those who are not supporters of Anies-Muhaimin are welcome to attend.

"I want to convey to everyone that this is our commitment as presidential candidates to dialogue with young people and provide space for young people to discuss things that are of interest to them," said Anies in Banjarmasin, South Kalimantan (Kompas.id< /i>, 12/5/2023).

KOMPAS/BAHANA PATRIA GUPTA

Presidential candidate number one, Anies Baswedan, answered questions at the Desak Anies Chapter Finale event at the DBL Arena in Surabaya on Friday (9/2/2024).

Also read: "Anies Urges" and Commitment to Absorbing the Aspirations of Young Voters

Anies-Muhaimin utilized digital platforms, including Tiktok, which were previously attached to Prabowo-Gibran. He also took advantage of the Live Tiktok feature to answer random questions from netizens who joined the live. The Anies-Muhaimin National Team said the method was used because there was awareness of the large number of young generation Z voters who used the application.

The "gemoy" strategy

Prabowo-Gibran, who currently holds the position of Minister of Defense and Mayor of Solo, chose to work as usual on the first day of the campaign period, November 28th, 2023. Prabowo just started campaigning on Saturday (2/12/2023) in Tasikmalaya, West Java. Meanwhile, Gibran welcomed a group of caretakers from a pesantren (Islamic boarding school) and a taklim council in Central Java.

Iklan

Afterwards, Prabowo-Gibran went on a safari to several regions in Indonesia. They took advantage of the Christmas holiday break to visit different areas. Prabowo visited Aceh, while Gibran explored several markets in Jakarta and then went on to visit the city of Manado in North Sulawesi.

The campaign strategy chosen by Prabowo-Gibran was to have a "gemoy" image. Gemoy is another term for adorable. Prabowo's adorable movements are often shown on stage. Various video clips of Prabowo dancing, accompanied by up beat music, are circulating on social media. It is not uncommon for this couple to rule Tiktok.

Prabowo repeatedly stated that his dancing style emerged spontaneously from his subconscious, from memories of the past. "So perhaps in my subconscious, every time there is good news, I do that (dance)," said Prabowo at the Muhammadiyah University of Surabaya, East Java, on Friday (24/11/2023).

Also read: Prabowo's "Gemoy" Strategy amidst the Onslaught of Negative Sentiment

KOMPAS/KURNIA YUNITA RAHAYU

Candidate number 2 for president, Prabowo Subianto, attended a grand campaign titled "Pesta Rakyat Wis Wayahe" at the Delta Sidoarjo Sports Arena in East Java on Friday (9/2/2024) afternoon.

On several occasions, Prabowo-Gibran have distributed free milk to the community. In addition, they have also implemented a program for free meals for the public if elected as the next president and vice president.

Stay at a local's house

Pair number 3, Ganjar-Mahfud, immediately hit the campaign trail in the first few days. On the first day, Ganjar flew to the far east of the archipelago, in Merauke, South Papua. The next day, he stayed in the city before returning to Jakarta for the third day of campaigning. On the fourth day, Ganjar flew again to East Nusa Tenggara.

In addition to holding dialogues, Ganjar is also actively staying overnight at residents' homes. For example, on Sunday (28/1/2024), the Governor of Central Java for two periods stayed at a resident's home in Jobolawang Hamlet, Pagerharjo Village, Samigaluh District, Kulon Progo, DI Yogyakarta. He enjoyed lompong vegetable dishes served by local residents.

Approaching the day of voting, Ganjar becomes more intensive in directly meeting with communities in various regions. "Direct engagement with communities is something far more important to do at this time," he said in Magelang District, Central Java, Wednesday (7/2/2024).

Meanwhile, Mahfud MD uses a dialogue approach by inviting residents to ask him critical questions through the Tabrak Prof! program. In Aceh, for example, he was asked various questions such as the issue of Rohingya refugees, the sustainability of the program for handling victims of serious human rights violations, and his reasons for joining the presidential candidate supported by the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P).

The Ganjar-Mahfud duo is also highlighted for often wearing informal clothing, such as jackets. Not forgetting, there are also messages of "sat-set" and "tas-tes" slipped in, referring to their offer to work efficiently and quickly resolve various issues if they are elected as the president and vice-president.

KOMPAS/NINO CITRA ANUGRAHANTO

Presidential candidate number 3, Ganjar Pranowo, greeted his supporters in front of the Surakarta City Hall during the final campaign for presidential and vice presidential candidate number 3, Ganjar-Mahfud, in Surakarta City, Central Java, on Saturday (10/02/2024).

Also read: Reward Intensifying Visits to Residents

The dynamics during the 2024 campaign are also intertwined with events that occurred during the Presidential Debate 2024, which was divided into five sessions, consisting of three Presidential candidate debates and two Vice Presidential candidate debates. Attacks, questions, and even challenges to the programs and performance of public officials are prevalent. The drama of the presidential debates becomes its own color in this election.