ULM Political Observer Says Prabowo and Anies Will Fight for Votes in the 2024 Presidential Election in South Kalimantan

BANJARMASIN – The contest for presidential and vice presidential candidates in the 2024 elections is getting more exciting. After the words Banjarmasin ‘pity’ were uttered, it seems that it will become a contest for voters’ votes in South Kalimantan. Political observer, Samahuddin Muharram, is of the opinion that the movement of candidate pair number 1 has apparently photographed and studied the conditions in Banjarmasin. So, it becomes a strategic issue to attract voters’ hearts. Moreover, the first round of debate that Muhaimin (Cak Imin) as Anies’ companion revealed to the public was true. So, his rivals must pay serious attention. “This is a strategy that is being thrown to the public in the hope that it will attract people’s attention so that they will get sympathy from them to vote,” he said, Wednesday (27/12/2023) afternoon.

This government and political science academic at Lambung Mangkurat University (ULM) Banjarmasin also highlighted the development of other candidate pairs, namely serial number 2, Prabowo – Gibran. It cannot be denied that Prabowo was superior as Jokowi’s challenger in 2019. In fact, the voters cover more than 50 percent. The owner of the full name Prabowo Subianto won a landslide victory in the 2019 presidential election contest in South Kalimantan with his previous partner Sandiaga Uno. He also received the most votes with 1,470,163 votes or a percentage of 64.09 percent.

Meanwhile, the number of voters for the Jokowi – Ma’ruf Amin pair in South Kalimantan was around 35.91 percent, or to be precise, they were only able to collect 823,939 votes. “Twice in the presidential election, Prabowo was the winner in South Kalimantan. “So, there will be an advantage in electoral politics in the 2024 presidential election,” he said. If this problem can be accepted by society, it will once again become a concern. The potential voters in Banjarmasin are quite large. The population currently reaches 673,514 people with a density of 13,567 people/km².

Details of the population per sub-district in 2022, including South Banjamasin (166,879 people), East Banjarmasin (124,409 people), West Banjarmasin (137,285 people), Central Banjarmasin (90,354 people), North Banjamasin (154,587 people). This number is also recorded in the local city BPS statistical data. It is possible that Banjarmasin, a city nicknamed a thousand river city, aka a thousand rivers, could be the base for serial number 1. Looking at it from there, the potential vote for serial number 1 leads to Banjarmasin City. If this happens, the candidate pair with the most voters in 2019 will have to really think about the 2024 presidential election.

So what steps is team number 2 taking so that their votes are not divided during the 2024 presidential and vice presidential elections? Samahuddin is of the opinion that in order to maintain popularity, their volunteers must focus on gaining votes. It just remains how the Prabowo – Gibran team in South Kalimantan plays strategic issues. Seeing, the competitors for the 2024 presidential election are considered very tight. “Therefore, the volunteer team must also focus on what the grass roots are like so they can collect votes in the 2024 presidential election,” he stressed.

Previously, the Head of the South Kalimantan Regional Campaign Team (TKD), Sulaiman Umar, said that Prabowo – Gibran’s victory as presidential and vice presidential candidates was targeted at above 50 percent. The TKD survey results show that the average voter interest in South Kalimantan is dominated by Gen Z and Millennials. “85 percent in South Kalimantan are more inclined towards Prabowo – Gibran,” he said.

Reflecting on 2019, Prabowo actually won a landslide victory over Jokowi. Where, the voter’s vote was able to gain 64 percent. “At least you can cover more than 51 percent and win one round,” explained the Head of South Kalimantan TKD, Sulaiman Umar. One of the concrete strategies so that vote acquisition can be achieved according to target is optimizing social media networks (social media).

What steps will the Anies-Muhaimin team take to see that Prabowo’s vote share is superior so that they can beat their rivals in South Kalimantan? TPD Anies – Muhaimin South Kalimantan is confident of getting 75% of the votes and is optimistic about winning 1 round. Secretary of the South Kalimantan Regional Winning Team (TPD), Maulana Nur, admitted that he was optimistic that the presidential and vice presidential candidate pair Anies – Muhaimin would be able to win this contest. “The number of our Permanent Voter List (DPT) in South Kalimantan has reached more than 3 million. Of course, various preparations have been made. “So, the target of 75 percent can be achieved,” he said, during his meeting with the district TPD volunteer team.

Maulana admitted that Prabowo’s potential base in South Kalimantan was indeed strong. However, his party was not afraid to win the most votes. The most important thing, according to him, is that Anies-Muhaimin’s votes have begun to attract first-time voters. “Gen Z and millennials to be precise,” he said. Because the Anies-Muhaimin base has long been built. It is not impossible for them to reap the coffers of votes. “We have closed our ranks, including our volunteers in districts/cities in South Kalimantan who are very ready to attract voters,” he said.

He explained that Banjar Regency and Banjarmasin City are the bases that will be their main targets to win the battle in the 2024 presidential election in the 2024. “Regency/city TPDs, according to internal agreement, must receive 50 percent of the voters’ votes. “What is clear is that these two areas have great potential, hopefully they will win absolutely,” he said. So, there is a possibility that voters will split into two camps. Whether it’s candidate pair (paslon) number 1 Anies – Muhaimin or number 2, namely Prabowo-Gibran.

“Indeed, it is a bit like candidate pairs 1 and 2 considering that they have a real grassroots base of voters in South Kalimantan. Yes, we know that the party supporting Anies-Cak Imin is PKB and community organizations. “Meanwhile, Prabowo-Gibran is supported by Golkar and Gerindra, which are quite dominant in South Kalimantan,” continued ULM Political Observer, Samahuddin Muharram. Based on his observations so far, Gibran, who is fully supported by Jokowi, has apparently influenced Ganjar’s candidacy as presidential candidate. “Of course it will influence PDIP voters who nominate Ganjar as their cadre. “For Mahfud MD as his running mate, there may also be separate voters, namely the middle class or activists in South Kalimantan,” he concluded.