Analisis Eksistensi Relawan Politik Peserta Pemilihan Umum pada Pemilihan Umum Presiden Indonesia 2019 di Kota Medan

Abstract

The Indonesian Presidential Election in 2019 was the important moment in the history of Indonesian democracy where the voters’ participation had the highest percentage in the presidential election in the reformation era. In Medan, the percentage of voters’ participation was 74.20%. This was caused by some factors, and one of them was political volunteers. Their role was significant in supporting candidates, moving mob of people, and using social media. However, their existence also causes some problems concerning the regulations on political volunteers. This was the response to the practice of political volunteers concerning financial, ethics and transparency which can appear in the practice of political volunteers. The data were gathered by using qualitative method, and primary data were gatheredby conducting in-depth interview (online and offline) and triangulation with secondary data through literature study. The result of the research showed that the existence of political volunteers was not regulated yet, but their existence should be considered as the part of the political process which is regulated by law and regulations. The regulation should guarantee that political volunteers will not misuse their power and resources to achieve their political goal which is seen in their compensation toward some groups. This condition will of couse mar their volunteering values. Political volunteers have become one of the important instruments because they play significant role in the process of general election. The role includes campaigns, socialization of candidate’s program, funding, general election monitoring, and many other supporting systems. They help increase voters’ participation, moving public, and helping their candidates campaigns. Besides that, they also play the role in strengthening the bond between the candidate and the voters, which encourage voters to support the candidate who they believe the best choice.