The Resilience of the Moral Discourse of the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) Amidst the Dominance of Transactional Politics in the Selayar Islands, Indonesia

Abstract

Local political contests in Indonesia are often influenced by political compromises and oligarchic intervention, especially when political campaign costs increase, forcing parties to rely on material resources concentrated among certain elites. However, this dynamic in the local politics of the islands has been understudied. This study examines the resilience of the moral discourse marketing of the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) in the political market of the Selayar Islands, amidst the dominance of the transactional political power of the oligarchy in the 2024 Legislative Elections. This study uses a qualitative approach with a case study design. Data were collected through in-depth interviews and analyzed using a thematic approach. The findings show that the resilience of PKS in marketing moral discourse was able to compete with transactional political logic in the Selayar Islands in the 2024 Legislative Elections. In maintaining its electoral existence, PKS consistently and repeatedly articulates, produces, and distributes moral messages and social activities, thereby strengthening its alternative political identity in surviving and adapting amidst the dominance of transactional political practices. This study enriches the literature on politics and government, particularly the study of political party resilience, by emphasizing the role of non-material resources in political marketing in the islands .