Aceh Party


The Aceh Party is a regional political party in Indonesia. It contested the 2009 elections in the province of Aceh, and is the largest party in the Aceh provincial legislature

History

The Aceh Party was formerly known as GAM Party after the Free Aceh Movement, the separatist group that fought for independence for Aceh province. Many of its leaders were senior figures in the movement. Its chairman is the former commander of GAM's military wing.

2009 elections

The party stood in the 2009 elections in Aceh, and was predicted to win in at least 15 of Aceh's 21 regencies. The party set a target of 70% of the Aceh vote. During the election campaign, party buildings and vehicles were attacked, including the use of grenades and bombs. Shots were fired at party members. On several occasions, Indonesian Armed Forces personnel lowered Aceh Party flags.
The party won 46.91% of the votes in the province, by far the largest share, beating both local and national parties. This was enough to give it 33 of the 69 seats in the provincial legislature.

2012 election

The Aceh Party's candidate for the gubernatorial election in Aceh, Zaini Abdullah, was elected with a comfortable majority in the election held in 2012.

2014 elections

The party contested the 2014 elections, again only in Aceh. Despite optimistically claiming it would win 60-70% of the vote during the election campaign, its vote fell sharply to 35.3 percent, although this was enough for a plurality. One reason for the drop in its vote was the internal party conflict that had raged since February 2011, which led to several Aceh Party members to leave to establish the Aceh National Party. The Aceh Party won 29 of the 81 seats in the provincial legislature.