Public Trust as a Measure of Democratic Legitimacy: Electoral Governance in Indonesia
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.63208/21015-518Keywords:
Democratic Legitimacy, Electoral Governance, Electoral Accountability, Political Participation, Public TrustAbstract
Public trust is a critical indicator of democratic legitimacy because it directly shapes citizens’ confidence in electoral institutions, constitutional governance, and democratic processes. This study examines public trust as a measure of democratic legitimacy in Indonesia using a normative juridical research method. Using both a statutory and a conceptual approach, the analysis focuses on primary legal materials, notably Law No. 7 of 2017 on General Elections and Article 25 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), as well as secondary legal materials, including legal literature, jurisprudence, and scholarly doctrine. The normative legal findings demonstrate that institutional transparency, statutory accountability, procedural electoral fairness, and robust guarantees of political rights are essential legal parameters that reinforce public trust and democratic legitimacy within Indonesia's constitutional framework. However, operational and socio-legal challenges, such as information manipulation, acute political polarization, and recurring electoral disputes, continue to test public confidence in the electoral system. The study concludes that enhancing legal certainty, strengthening institutional enforcement, and reforming electoral governance frameworks are indispensable imperatives for preserving democratic legitimacy, safeguarding citizens' constitutional rights, and sustaining democratic stability in Indonesia.
References
Ahmed, S., Wang, Y., & Tully, M. (2024). Perils of political engagement? Examining the relationship between online political participation and perceived electoral integrity during 2020 US election. Journal of Information Technology & Politics, 21(4), 453–464.
Bastian, H., Frye, E., Gary, C., Houck, D., Schneider, M., Thomason, F., & Werner, B. (2021). Data Analytics to Enhance Election Transparency.
Brown, M., Hale, K., Jordan, S., & Williamson, R. D. (2024). Restoring trust in US elections through effective election administrator messaging. Public Opinion Quarterly, 88(SI), 632–655.
Butt, A. (2024). International covenant on civil and political rights (ICCPR). Available at SSRN 4856071.
González, R., Mackenna, B., Scherman, A., & Joignant, A. (2024). Fairness beyond the ballot: A comparative analysis of failures of electoral integrity, perceptions of electoral fairness, and attitudes towards democracy across 18 countries. Electoral Studies, 87, 102740.
Hidayat, N., & Febriansyah, R. (2024). Penerapan good government dan electoral governance studi demokrasi Indonesia pada penyelenggaraan pilkada tahun 2024. Jurnal Inovasi Daerah, 3(2), 116–126.
Higashijima, M., Kadoya, H., & Yanai, Y. (2024). The dynamics of electoral manipulation and institutional trust in democracies: Election timing, blatant fraud, and the legitimacy of governance. Public Opinion Quarterly, 88(SI), 472–494.
Kerr, N., King, B. A., & Wahman, M. (2024). The global crisis of trust in elections. Public Opinion Quarterly, 88(SI), 451–471.
Malcolm, F. (2021). Democratic legitimacy and the competence obligation. Moral Philosophy and Politics, 8(1), 109–130.
Norris, P. (2025). Trustworthy elections. In The Oxford Handbook of Electoral Integrity. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Oser, J., Grinson, A., Boulianne, S., & Halperin, E. (2022). How political efficacy relates to online and offline political participation: A multilevel meta-analysis. Political Communication, 39(5), 607-633.
Papadopoulos, Y. (2023). Understanding Accountability in Democratic Governance. Cambridge University Press.
Pasquino, G., & Pelizzo, R. (2022). The Culture of Accountability: A Democratic Virtue. Routledge.
Sarah, S., & Suatmiati, S. (2022). General election system in Indonesia based on Law of the Republic of Indonesia No. 7 of 2017. Jurnal Sosial Teknologi, 2(9), 800–804.
Stals, L., Isac, M. M., & Claes, E. (2022). Political trust in early adolescence and its association with intended political participation: A cross-sectional study situated in Flanders. Young, 30(4), 377–399.
Stewart III, C. (2022). Trust in elections. Daedalus, 151(4), 234–253.
Willis, D., Merivaki, T., & Ziogas, I. (2022). Election data transparency: Obtaining precinct-level election returns. Public Integrity, 24(2), 162–178.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 The Author(s)
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
How to Cite
About this article
