The Ulema National Awakening Party ( id, Partai Kebangkitan Nasional Ulama) was an Islamist

political party A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular country's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific ideological or p ...

in Indonesia. The party was established by Indonesian ulemas seeking political vehicle to promote Islamic political values while being disillusioned with the

National Awakening Party The National Awakening Party ( id, Partai Kebangkitan Bangsa), frequently abbreviated to PKB, is an Islam-basedAl-Hamdi, Ridho. (2017). ''Moving towards a Normalised Path: Political Islam in Contemporary Indonesia''. JURNAL STUDI PEMERINTAHAN (J ...

. PKNU's main voter base was members of traditional Muslim organisation

Nahdlatul Ulama Nahdlatul Ulama (, , NU) is an Islamic organization in Indonesia. Its membership estimates range from 40 million (2013) to over 95 million (2021), making it the largest Islamic organization in the world. NU also is a charitable body funding sch ...

. The only election that PKNU contested was in 2009, as the party failed to participate in subsequent elections due to failure to satisfy the increasingly rigorous KPU RI criteria. Following years of electoral vacuum and continued resistance to unite with larger parties, PKNU leaders decided to merge the party with People's Sovereignty Party ''(Partai Kedaulatan Rakyat)'' in 2022.

History

PKNU was founded by ulemas affiliated by

who were disillusioned by the organisation's "political vehicle",

(PKB). Some 17 ulemas, including future vice president

Ma'ruf Amin Ma'ruf Amin (born 11 March 1943) is an Indonesian politician, Islamic cleric, and lecturer who is the 13th and current vice president of Indonesia. Aged nearly 77 years old when inaugurated, he is the oldest Indonesian vice president to ever ...

and Abdullah Faqih of Langitan Pesantren, are the initiators of the new party. They concurred to appoint Abdullah Chudori as the party's first Executive Council chief. PKNU contested the

2009 elections The following elections occurred in the year 2009. * Electoral calendar 2009 * 2009 United Nations Security Council election Caribbean * 2009 Antiguan general election * 2009 Aruban general election * 2009 Caymanian constitutional referendu ...

, but won only 1.5 percent of the vote, less than the 2.5 percent electoral threshold, meaning it was awarded no seats in the People's Representative Council. PKNU failed to participate in the 2014 election, per the KPU RI resolution in early 2013 which deemed the party not qualified to participate. Due to this failure, the party experienced mass exodus as its members and leaders left the party in favour of PKB. At the same time, PKB also invited PKNU members, along with New Indonesia National Sovereignty Party, to reconcile and "return home". Instead of returning to PKB, PKNU decided to approach another major Islamic party

United Development Party The United Development Party ( id, Partai Persatuan Pembangunan, sometimes translated as Development Unity Party; abbreviated PPP) is an Islam-basedAl-Hamdi, Ridho. (2013). ''Partai politik Islam: Teori dan praktik di Indonesia''. Yogyakarta: Grah ...

(PPP), with whom the party established a coalition in 2013. The coalition agreement enabled PKNU cadres to participate in 2014 elections by hopping in PPP party list. Party chairman Choirul Anam clarified that despite the coalition arrangement, PKNU had not fully merged with PPP. Following years of vacuum due to failure to participate in general elections, PKNU merged with People's Sovereignty Party ''(Partai Kedaulatan Rakyat)'', a newly established minor party, in 2022. Anam was appointed as the chairperson of the new party's Honorary Council.

Regional strength

In the legislative election held on 9 April 2009, support for the PKNU was higher than the party's national average in the following provinces: *

Lampung Lampung ( Lampung: ), officially the Province of Lampung ( id, Provinsi Lampung) is a province of Indonesia. It is located on the southern tip of the island of Sumatra. It has a short border with the province of Bengkulu to the northwest, and ...

: 1.5% * Central Java: 1.8% *

East Java East Java ( id, Jawa Timur) is a Provinces of Indonesia, province of Indonesia located in the easternmost hemisphere of Java island. It has a land border only with the province of Central Java to the west; the Java Sea and the Indian Ocean bord ...

: 4.6% *

West Nusa Tenggara West Nusa Tenggara ( id, Nusa Tenggara Barat – NTB) is a province of Indonesia. It comprises the western portion of the Lesser Sunda Islands, with the exception of Bali which is its own province. Mataram, on Lombok, is the capital and largest ...

: 1.7%

Notable members

Alwi Shihab Alwi Abdurrahman Shihab ( ar, علوي عبد الرحمن شهاب ') (born 19 August 1946 in South Sulawesi) is a scholar of the interaction of Christian and Muslim communities. Currently he is the Indonesian President's special envoy to the ...

, Coordinating Minister of People's Welfare (2004-2005) *

Vice President of Indonesia The vice president of the Republic of Indonesia ( id, Wakil Presiden Republik Indonesia) is second-highest officer in the executive branch of the Indonesian government, after the president, and ranks first in the presidential line of succ ...

(2019-2024)

References

{{United Development Party Conservative parties in Asia Islamic political parties in Indonesia Nationalist parties in Asia Defunct political parties in Indonesia 2022 disestablishments in Indonesia Political parties disestablished in 2022