Publication

This briefing examines the factors that led to the overwhelming victory in the December 2006 elections of the Free Aceh Movement (GAM). GAM polled more than double their closest competitors and went on to take seven of the district races, sometimes by extraordinary margins. Interviews with the major players involved in the campaign suggest that one of the most important factors in the outcome was GAM’s ability to mobilize thousands of election workers through the Aceh Transition Committee (Komite Peralihan Aceh, KPA), its old military command structure. KPA members played a major role in choosing the candidates, enlisting the support of village heads, and recruiting door-to-door campaigners.