Partisan Affiliations Remain Strong in Indonesia

Indonesian politics has traditionally featured a cleavage between secularist and Islamic political parties. In recent years, non-ideological, personalistic parties have risen to prominence challenging the traditional dichotomy. Between 1999 and 2014, there has been a change in voting patterns because of an erosion in long-standing ideological and partisan affiliations, known in Indonesia as aliran. However, important continuities remain. Correlations between historical and contemporary support for secularist and Islamic parties are still significant and strong, especially in Java and Bali. For a substantial segment of the electorate, partisan affiliations appear to be of not only patronage considerations or party leadership, but also from deep-seated ideological and social identities.