The Sukarno dynasty in Indonesia

Abstract

This article focuses on the history and current political relevance of the Sukarno dynasty in Indonesia. It analyses the reasons for the political longevity of the family, but also discusses internal and external pressures that have forced the dynasty to adopt new strategies to secure its survival. The article tests a number of assertions that political theorists have typically made about dynasties and their political parties: for instance, that they are institutionally weak, electorally unstable and have low levels of representativeness. I argue that the Sukarno family has been able to mitigate most of these much-discussed deficits, but has faced a series of succession crises that, if unresolved, threaten its long-term position in Indonesian politics.