Term Limits for Political Party Chairpersons as an Instrument of Internal Party Democracy: A Fiqh Siyasah Perspective

Authors

  • Fachrul Naufal Universitas Islam Negeri Sumatera Utara
  • Muhammad Ramadhan Universitas Islam Negeri Sumatera Utara

Keywords:

Term limits, Political party chairperson, Internal party democracy, Party autonomy, Fiqh siyasah

Abstract

This study examines the absence of explicit term limits for political party chairpersons in Indonesia and its implications for internal party democracy. Although Article 23 paragraph (1) of Law No. 2 of 2011 on Political Parties grants political parties autonomy to regulate leadership succession through their Articles of Association and Bylaws, it does not provide minimum standards regarding leadership tenure, periodization, or elite circulation. This study employs normative legal research using statutory, case, conceptual, and fiqh siyasah approaches. The primary legal materials include the 1945 Constitution of the Republic of Indonesia, Law No. 2 of 2008 as amended by Law No. 2 of 2011, Constitutional Court Decision No. 69/PUU-XXI/2023, and relevant internal party regulations. This study finds that the absence of minimum standards for chairperson tenure may weaken leadership regeneration, reinforce the personalization of party leadership, and enable elite domination within political parties. It argues that term limits for political party chairpersons should be regulated in the Political Party Law as a minimum standard of internal democracy, while technical mechanisms concerning nomination, election, dismissal, and deliberative forums should remain within each party’s internal rules. A five-year term renewable only once is proposed as a proportional model that balances party autonomy and internal democratic accountability. From a fiqh siyasah perspective, term limitation is justified as an ethical-normative instrument to preserve amānah, promote shūrā, uphold justice, realize public benefit, and prevent istibdād in political party governance.

References

Abdelaal, M. “Leadership Accountability in Islam: Islamic Standards for Holding the Executive Accountable for Official Misconduct.” Global Journal of Comparative Law 4, no. 2 (2015): 166–211. https://doi.org/10.1163/2211906X-00402002.

Adejumobi, S. “Unbundling liberal democracy: Institutions, participation and accountability.” In Voice and Power in Africa’s Democracy: Institutions, Participation and Accountability, 1–14, 2017. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315566092.

Akmaliyah, Ayu Annisa, Irfan Amir, Ismail Keri, dan Rosita. “Affirmatif Action Terhadap Perempuan dalam Bidang Politik ; Sebuah Tinjauan di Negara Hukum Pancasila.” Contitutional Law Revie 1, no. 2 (2022): 57–77. https://jurnal.iain-bone.ac.id/index.php/colrev/article/view/3972/1567.

Amir, Irfan, dan Mustafa. Aspek Hukum dan Dinamika Pemilihan Umum di Indonesia. Jakarta Selatan: Kreasi Cendekia Pustaka (KCP), 2021.

Amundsen, I. “Democratic dynasties? Internal party democracy in Bangladesh.” Party Politics 22, no. 1 (2016): 49–58. https://doi.org/10.1177/1354068813511378.

Arake, Lukman. “Agama dan Negara Perspektif Fiqh Siyasah.” Al-Adalah: Jurnal Hukum dan Politik Islam 3, no. 2 (2018): 79–116. https://doi.org/10.35673/ajmpi.v3i2.200.

Aris, Ismail, Irfan Amir, dan Septian Amrianto. “Konstitusionalitas Hak Angket Dewan Perwakilan Rakyat (DPR) Terhadap Komisi Pemberantasan Korupsi (KPK).” Al-Adalah: Jurnal Hukum dan Politik Islam 4, no. 2 (2019): 135–58. https://doi.org/10.35673/ajmpi.v4i2.436.

Bagg, Samuel, dan Udit Bhatia. “Intra-party Democracy: A Functionalist Account.” Journal of Political Philosophy 30, no. 3 (1 September 2022): 347–69. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1111/jopp.12270.

Barrat, Jordi, Eden Bolo, Alejandro Bravo, Robert Krimmer, Stephan Neumann, Al A. Parreño, Carsten Schürmann, Melanie Volkamer, dan Peter Wolf. Certification of ICTs in Elections. Stockholm, Sweden: International IDEA, 2015.

Bhatia, U. “What’s the Party Like? The Status of the Political Party in Anti-Defection Jurisdictions.” Law and Philosophy 40, no. 3 (2021): 305–34. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10982-020-09399-y.

BÖHMELT, TOBIAS, LAWRENCE EZROW, dan RONI LEHRER. “Populism and intra-party democracy.” European Journal of Political Research 61, no. 4 (1 November 2022): 1143–54. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1111/1475-6765.12509.

Bonotti, M. “Party Linkage, Public Justification and Mixed Electoral Systems.” Political Studies 70, no. 3 (2022): 586–602. https://doi.org/10.1177/0032321720978339.

Borz, Gabriela, dan Kenneth Janda. “Contemporary trends in party organization: Revisiting intra-party democracy.” Party Politics 26, no. 1 (1 Januari 2020): 3–8. https://doi.org/10.1177/1354068818754605.

Bulmer, W Elliot, dan Sujit Choudhry. POLITICAL PARTIES : CONSTITUTIONAL ROLES , RECOGNITION , RIGHTS AND POLITICAL PARTIES : CONSTITUTIONAL ROLES , RECOGNITION , RIGHTS AND REGULATIONS. International IDEA Stromsborg. Stockholm, Sweden, 2025. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.31752/idea.2025.54.

Caverly, M M. “Iron Law of Oligarchy.” In The Encyclopedia of Political Thought, 1–2, 2014. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781118474396.wbept0540.

Chambers, P, dan N Waitoolkiat. “Faction Politics in an Interrupted Democracy: the Case of Thailand.” Journal of Current Southeast Asian Affairs 39, no. 1 (2020): 144–66. https://doi.org/10.1177/1868103420906020.

Chiru, Mihail. “Clientelism , Party Organization and Intra-party Democracy.” Comparative Political Studies 58, no. 4 (2025): 680–713. https://doi.org/10.1177/00104140241252082.

Croissant, A, dan P Chambers. “Unravelling intra-party democracy in Thailand.” Asian Journal of Political Science 18, no. 2 (2010): 195–223. https://doi.org/10.1080/02185377.2010.492990.

Dewan Pengurus Pusat PKB. “Anggaran Dasar Anggaran Rumah Tangga Partai Kebangkitan Bangsa hasil Muktamar PKB Nusa Dua, Bali 20-22 Agustus 2019.” SEKRETARIAT JENDERAL DPP PKB, 2019.

Dzar, M A, M A Ilyas, I Putra, dan E L H Al Smadi. “Sharī‘ah-Based Governance as a Contextual Normative Framework: Relevance and Reconstruction in Modern State Governance.” Jurnal Ilmiah Mizani 13, no. 1 (2026): 512–29. https://doi.org/10.29300/mzn.v13i1.10569.

Dzar, M A, M A Zaim, dan M Amanullah. “Conceptualizing Siyasah in the Four Sunni Schools: Classical Juristic Debates and the Juristic Logic of Political Flexibility.” Al-Istinbath: Jurnal Hukum Islam 11, no. 1 (2026): 292–316. https://doi.org/10.29240/jhi.v11i1.16245.

Elkins, Z. “Term-limit evasions and the non-compliance cycle.” Constitutional Political Economy 32, no. 3 (2021): 326–45. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10602-021-09332-y.

Erianto, Dwi. “Ketua Umum Partai Nasional Demokrat ( Nasdem ) Surya Dharma Paloh.” Kompas.id, 2022.

Federal Ministry of the Interior and Community (Germany). “Founding Political Parties.” Federal Ministry of the Interior and Community, n.d.

Ghafur, J. “PEMBATASAN MASA JABATAN KETUA UMUM PARTAI POLITIK: TINJAUAN NEGARA HUKUM DAN DEMOKRASI.” Jurnal Litigasi 25, no. 2 (2024): 407–39. https://doi.org/10.23969/litigasi.v25i2.19327.

Heller, W B, dan C Mershon. “Introduction: Legislative party switching, parties, and party systems.” In Political Parties and Legislative Party Switching, 3–28, 2009. https://doi.org/10.1057/9780230622555_1.

Heyl, C, dan M Llanos. “Sequences of presidential-term-Limit reforms: Latin America and sub-Saharan Africa.” Democratization 29, no. 1 (2022): 18–37. https://doi.org/10.1080/13510347.2021.1980540.

Indonesia, Republik. “Undang-Undang No. 2 Tahun 2011 Tentang Perubahan Atas Undang-Undang no. 2 Tahun 2008 tentang Partai Politik.” Lembaran Negara Republik Indonesia Tahun 2011 Nomor 8. Tambahan Lembaran Negara Republik Indonesia Nomor 5189, 2011.

Konstistusi RI, Mahkamah Konstitusi. Putusan Mahkamah Konstitusi Nomor 69/PUU-XXI/2023 (2023).

Lifante-Vidal, I. “Is legal certainty a formal value?” In Jurisprudence, 456–67, 2020. https://doi.org/10.1080/20403313.2020.1778289.

Lima, B F, dan G Silotto. “Political parties’ functions in Latin America: Assessing the gap between expectations and reality.” In De Gruyter Contemporary Social Sciences Handbooks, 7:249–74, 2026. https://doi.org/10.1515/9783111170015-014.

Lisi, M. “Conceptualising and Measuring Leadership Autonomy in Contemporary Party Organisations.” Political Studies 72, no. 1 (2024): 398–418. https://doi.org/10.1177/00323217221117381.

Lubis, R, R H Lubis, H Sulaiman, D Purnama, dan N Isyanto. “Reconstruction of the Principle of People’s Sovereignty Based on the Perspective of Fiqh Siyasah.” KARSA 33, no. 2 (2025): 770–802. https://doi.org/10.19105/karsa.v33i2.20852.

Maboudi, T, G P. Nadi, dan T A Eisenstadt. “Render unto Caesar Just a Little Bit Longer: The Relationship between Constitutional Reforms and Executive Survival.” Government and Opposition 58, no. 3 (2023): 576–97. https://doi.org/10.1017/gov.2021.53.

Mahalia, Aujana. “3 Ketua Umum PKB Sejak Berdiri pada 1998.” https://www.detik.com/, 2023.

Marino, Bruno, Nicola Martocchia Diodati, dan Luca Verzichelli. “The personalization of party politics in Western Europe (1985–2016): evidence from an expert survey.” Acta Politica 57, no. 3 (2022): 571–96. https://doi.org/10.1057/s41269-021-00210-x.

Mergaliyev, Arman, Mehmet Asutay, Alija Avdukic, dan Yusuf Karbhari. “Higher Ethical Objective (Maqasid al-Shari’ah) Augmented Framework for Islamic Banks: Assessing Ethical Performance and Exploring Its Determinants.” Journal of Business Ethics 170, no. 4 (2021): 797–834. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-019-04331-4.

Morlok, M. “The function of Political Parties and the Parliament.” Teoria y Realidad Constitucional, no. 44 (2019): 375–82. https://doi.org/10.5944/trc.44.2019.26009.

Mukhlis, M M, D Rahadian, dan G O Lohalo. “Narrating Recruitment Model for Legislator Candidates: Is It Fair?” Jambe Law Journal 7, no. 1 (2024): 91–126. https://doi.org/10.22437/home.v7i1.345.

Mukhlis, M M, M S Tajuddin, dan A Rahman. “Democratization or Extra-Constitutionalism: Ideas for Limiting the Term of Office for Chairmen of Political Parties in Indonesia.” Jambura Law Review 6, no. 2 (2024): 367–402. https://doi.org/10.33756/jlr.v6i2.24116.

Nastitie, Denty Piawai. “Yusril Ihza Mahendra Mundur Jadi Tantangan Baru PBB.” Kompas.id, 2024.

OSCE, dan Venice Commission. “Guidelines on Political Party Regulation.” OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights. Second Edi. Poland, 2020.

Palacios, I. “The relationship between views and evaluations of democracy.” In How Europeans View and Evaluate Democracy Revisited: Ten Years Later, 206–29, 2025. https://doi.org/10.1093/oso/9780198883319.003.0009.

PDI Perjuangan. “Anggaran Dasar dan Anggaran Rumah Tangga Partai Demokrasi Indoensia Perjuangan Masa Bakti 2019-2024.” PDI Perjuangan, 2024.

Peres, P, dan A Machado. “A typology of party recruitment.” Opiniao Publica 23, no. 1 (2017): 126–67. https://doi.org/10.1590/1807-01912017231126.

Pócza, K, dan D Oross. “From Deliberation to Pure Mobilisation? the Case of National Consultations in Hungary.” Politics in Central Europe 18, no. 1 (2022): 79–109. https://doi.org/10.2478/pce-2022-0004.

Prayitno, Cipto, Magister Ilmu, dan Hukum Universitas. “Analisis Konstitusionalitas Batasan Kewenangan Presiden dalam Penetapan Peraturan Pemerintah Pengganti Constitutionality Analysis Limitation.” Jurnal Konstitusi 17, no. 2 (2020). https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.31078/jk17210.

Pusat, Dewan Pimpinan. “Anggaran Dasar Anggaran RT Partai NasDem Hasil Kongres II Tahun 2019.” Partai NasDem, 2019.

Putra, F, D Subekti, dan Z A Ayub. “LEGAL ASPECTS OF POLITICAL PARTY INTERNAL CONFLICT RESOLUTION: A Case Study in Indonesia.” Al-Risalah: Forum Kajian Hukum dan Sosial Kemasyarakatan 25, no. 1 (2025): 53–69. https://doi.org/10.30631/alrisalah.v25i1.1842.

Qosim, M R, H S S Hariz, Y I Arowosaiye, dan M Azizah. “The Politicization of Religion and Law Enforcement in Indonesia’s Democratic Elections: An Islamic Legal Perspective.” Al-Manahij: Jurnal Kajian Hukum Islam 19, no. 2 (2025): 313–34. https://doi.org/10.24090/mnh.v19i2.15244.

Rahman, B A. “Debating shura and democracy among British Muslim organizations.” Indonesian Journal of Islam and Muslim Societies 1, no. 2 (2011): 229–52. https://doi.org/10.18326/ijims.v1i2.229-252.

Rahmayanty, Mubarika, dan Irfan Amir. “Juridical Analysis of Implementing the Presidential Threshold in the Presidential Election Of Indonesia.” Jurnal Al-Dustur 4, no. 1 (2021): 83–107. https://doi.org/doi.org/10.30863/jad.v4i1.1477.

Ristyawati, A, Y J Utama, L.T.A.L. Wardhani, dan W N Hanum. “RETHINKING LEGISLATIVE TERM LIMITS: SAFEGUARDING DEMOCRATIC RENEWAL IN CONSTITUTIONAL STATE OF INDONESIA.” Diponegoro Law Review 10, no. 1 (2025): 16–28. https://doi.org/10.14710/dilrev.10.1.2025.16-28.

Rødland, L. “Some policies matter more: party salience and interest group access to political parties in Western democracies.” Journal of European Public Policy 32, no. 7 (2025): 1780–1803. https://doi.org/10.1080/13501763.2024.2387641.

Salmah, S, G Irianto, A D Mulawarman, dan L Purwanti. “The reality behind the accountability of the XYZ political party.” Journal of Advanced Research in Dynamical and Control Systems 12, no. 2 (2020): 1546–61. https://doi.org/10.5373/JARDCS/V12I2/S20201196.

Sandri, G, dan A Amjahad. “Party membership and intra-party democracy: How do members react to organizational change within political parties?: The case of Belgium.” Partecipazione e Conflitto 8, no. 1 (2015): 190–214. https://doi.org/10.1285/i20356609v8i1p190.

Sanjaya, Yefta Christopherus Asia. “5 Ketua Umum Partai Terlama di Indonesia : Megawati , Prabowo , hingga Cak Imin.” Kompas.Com, 2025.

Streltsov, D V. “Dominant party systems: Some approaches to the methodology of the study.” Polis (Russian Federation), no. 3 (2017): 105–18. https://doi.org/10.17976/jpps/2017.03.07.

Tekke, M, P J Watson, S Kayadibi, dan Z J Chen. “Amanah and Muslim Identity: Relationships with Religious and Psychological Adjustment in Malaysia.” Journal of Religion and Health 59, no. 2 (2020): 891–904. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10943-018-0690-3.

Trikarinaputri, Ervana. “Perjalanan Megawati Memimpin PDIP Sejak 1993.” Tempo.co, 2025.

Ulrich, J. Intra-Party Competitive Democracy. A Study of Party Organisation from the Perspective of Law and Economics Against the Backdrop of the Requirement of Intra-Party Democracy in Article 21 Paragraph 1 Sentence 3 of the German Basic Law. Beiträge zum Organisationsverfassungsrecht. Vol. 18, 2025. https://doi.org/10.1628/978-3-16-163893-0.

Ultanbayev, A, M Tolegen, I Smailova, A Kozhakhmetova, A Abilmazhina, dan A Sharapatov. “PUBLIC PERCEPTIONS OF THE ROLE OF PARLIAMENTS IN MODERN DEMOCRACIES: ACCOUNTABILITY AND TRUST IN PARLIAMENT IN KAZAKHSTAN.” Access to Justice in Eastern Europe 8, no. 3 (2025). https://doi.org/10.33327/AJEE-18-8.3-a000102.

Vicentini, Giulia, dan Andrea Pritoni. “The rise and fall of party leaders: exploring leadership selection, re-selection, and de-selection using qualitative comparative analysis.” Italian Political Science Review/Rivista Italiana di Scienza Politica 51, no. 3 (2021): 373–88. https://doi.org/DOI: 10.1017/ipo.2021.6.

Wolkenstein, Fabio. “Intra-party democracy beyond aggregation.” Party Politics 24, no. 4 (1 Juli 2018): 323–34. https://doi.org/10.1177/1354068816655563.

Wulandari, Kiki, Putri Apriani, Sulkifly, dan Irfan Amir. “Deparpolisasi Keanggotaan Dewan Perwakilan Daerah (Tela’ah Atas Hasrat Partai Politik Dalam Mengokupasi DPD),” n.d., 42–56.

Published

2026-07-09

How to Cite

Fachrul Naufal, & Ramadhan, M. (2026). Term Limits for Political Party Chairpersons as an Instrument of Internal Party Democracy: A Fiqh Siyasah Perspective. Al-Adalah: Jurnal Hukum Dan Politik Islam, 11(2). Retrieved from http://jurnal.iain-bone.ac.id/index.php/aladalah/article/view/11958

Issue

Vol. 11 No. 2 (2026)

Section

Artikel

License

Copyright (c) 2026 Fachrul Naufal, Muhammad Ramadhan

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

Authors who publish with Al-Adalah: Jurnal Hukum dan Politik Islam agree to the following terms:

  1. Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY-SA 4.0) that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgment of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal. 

  2. Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgment of its initial publication in this journal.

  3. Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work.