This is What Political Parties Need to Do to Maintain a Good Public Image

A Kompas Research and Development (Litbang Kompas) poll reveals several steps political parties (parpol) can take to improve their public image.

24.6% of respondents believe political parties should engage directly with the public to enhance their image.

Furthermore, 20.9% expect political parties to fulfill their campaign promises. This is followed by 18.3% who want political parties to be honest, possess integrity, and be anti-corruption.

Other necessary steps include improving party performance and work professionalism (13.9%); prioritizing public welfare and the economy (6.6%); improving the party's political system (3.7%); and improving the quality of party cadres (3.1%).

"This reflects that the journey of the reform era, which has opened the 'Pandora's Box' of freedom of expression and politics, has not yet reached an ideal level," wrote a Kompas Litbang researcher in their report on Monday, September 8, 2025.

In line with this, 56.4% of respondents stated that political parties have not yet become a voice for the people's aspirations. Meanwhile, only 37.8% believe that political parties have voiced the public's aspirations.

This survey involved 506 respondents from 71 cities across 38 provinces, selected randomly according to the population proportion in each province.

Data collection was conducted from August 11-14, 2025, through telephone interviews. The survey's margin of error is approximately 4.26% with a 95% confidence level, under conditions of simple random sampling.