Yogyakarta, May 7, 2026─In an effort to respond to the increasingly challenging dynamics of national politics, the Politics and Government Student Corps (KOMAP), Faculty of Social and Political Sciences (FISIPOL) Universitas Gadjah Mada, in collaboration with the Association for Elections and Democracy (Perludem), successfully organized an interactive talkshow. Presenting the main theme “From Campus for Democracy: Safeguarding Election Reform Through the Revision of the Election Law,” the event took place solemnly and enthusiastically on Thursday (7/5) in the open area of the West Corridor (Selasar Barat), FISIPOL UGM.
This public discussion forum was intentionally held strategically as a form of reflection and a concrete response to the condition of Indonesian democracy, which is currently considered by many parties to be in a critical phase. Amidst various evaluation notes on state administration, discursive spaces within the campus environment must be revived to maintain the public’s critical reasoning. Guided directly by Muhammad Fayyaz Iftikhar, Head of the Analysis and Movement Division of KOMAP, this in-depth discussion sought to weave together various sharp perspectives from the attending experts.
The event featured three expert speakers in the fields of elections and constitutional law. They were Hadar N. Gumay (Executive Director of Netgrit), Titi Anggraini (Constitutional Law Academic at Universitas Indonesia), and Hurriyah (Executive Director of Puskapol Universitas Indonesia). The three speakers dissected the anatomy of the electoral system from upstream to downstream. The comprehensive views from the three resource persons were directly responded to by Prof. Zainal Arifin Mochtar (Professor of Constitutional Law, Faculty of Law UGM) and Prof. Amalinda Savirani (Professor of Political Science, FISIPOL UGM).
In his presentation, Hadar N. Gumay specifically highlighted the urgency of regulatory improvement as the main foundation and initial step to restore the state of democracy, which is currently experiencing a setback. According to him, a transparent and adaptive legal framework is an absolute prerequisite for conducting elections with integrity.
“The point is that there is a lot that needs to be fixed, and it starts with the Election Law,” Hadar asserted before the students crowding the West Corridor. “Hopefully, with this understanding, we can collectively push for better election quality through the discussion of the Election Law.” This statement simultaneously served as a catalyst for students not merely to be observers, but active actors who safeguard the formulation of regulations.
In addition to formal regulatory issues, the talkshow also touched upon how the practice of political contestation must be returned to a realm that prioritizes ethics and substance. This cross-disciplinary collaboration of ideas from experts in constitutional law and political science provides a complete picture of the massive homework awaiting the Indonesian nation.
Through this insightful activity, KOMAP FISIPOL UGM and Perludem sincerely hope that the intellectual passion of students continues to burn bright. More than just procedural improvements, this discursive initiative is fundamentally a tangible manifestation of the campus’s contribution to building resilient, inclusive, and equitable political institutions for the sustainability of the nation’s future.