In a political landscape often perceived as dominated by male figures, the name Endah Subekti Kuntariningsih rose to prominence after being elected the second female regent in Gunungkidul’s history. Her leadership in a region famed for walang goreng (fried grasshoppers) is not just a symbol of gender equality; it shows that women’s leadership can be a force to reckon with.

A PDIP (The Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle) cadre, Endah’s style is notably close to ordinary people. She often appears at village traditions, sits cross-legged with residents, and has even been seen promoting local foods like gatot and thiwul. Her social-media image seems to say: “Endah is not only a regent, but a ‘village mother’ present among the community.”

But Endah is not the only PDIP woman on DIY’s political stage. From the same party, there are three other women who brand themselves skillfully on social media with strong personas: Chisya Ayu Puspitaweni, the youngest DPRD member in Sleman and once a Gen-Z darling there; Andriana Wulandari, Chair of Commission B of the DIY DPRD and a frequent headline maker for her vocal statements; and Mega Nusantara Wati, a young politician in the Gunungkidul DPRD.

Though different in age, style, and political approach, together they illustrate how PDIP in DIY places women on the regional political stage. So—who is the most popular?

Faces of PDIP Women in DIY

Endah Subekti Kuntariningsih – Regent of Gunungkidul

Endah is not the type of politician who merely shows up at ceremonial events. She elevates local issues—such as jamasan pusaka (heirloom bathing rites) and the fishermen’s sea-offering tradition (petik laut)—as part of Gunungkidul’s identity.

She also stays up to date with social-media trends. Her TikTok account joined the aura farming trend, timed with the petik laut agenda of Sadeng’s fishermen.

On Instagram, Endah actively posts both her activities as regent and her personal life. She even separates her personal account from her “regent figure” account.

Endah is adept at turning issues into high-engagement content. One example: her response to a civil-service recruitment scam that used her name. Endah’s anger was packaged in a dramatic video of her slamming an ashtray in front of the perpetrator. The video went viral, drawing significant interactions and media attention.

Chisya Ayu – Youngest Sleman DPRD Member

Chisya represents the young generation of women in local politics. In the last election, she used Instagram as a campaign medium, narrating the slogan “Mabur”—an acronym for Muda, Amanah, Bekerja untuk Rakyat (Young, Trustworthy, Working for the People).

Like Endah, Chisya separates her personal and “political” accounts. Her political style is equally populist. She frequently posts sarasehan (community dialogues) with constituents in her electoral district. This closeness—polished with a Gen-Z touch—helped her win a seat in the Sleman DPRD.

Unfortunately, Chisya’s Instagram has looked quiet over the past month. She has also received limited attention from mass media. In the digital-politics era, consistent management of public communication channels is key to sustaining attention. Although still active in the DPRD, her online visibility has faded compared with the campaign period.

Andriana Wulandari – Chair, Commission B, DIY DPRD

Hailing from Bantul, Andriana is a PDIP cadre who heads Commission B (economic and financial affairs) of the provincial DPRD. As a politician in this role, she has become something of a media darling in DIY.

Her communication pattern differs from the two PDIP cadres above: she relies on mass media as the main megaphone. Searching “DPRD DIY” shows her name appearing 61 times, placing her as the third most-mentioned political figure in news during July 2025.

By contrast, her personal Instagram posted only six items throughout July 2025, and those were collaboration posts from the DPRD DIY Instagram account.

Mega Nusantara Wati – Member, Commission B, Gunungkidul DPRD

Known as Mbak Mega, she holds a Commission B seat in the Gunungkidul DPRD. Mega won through Electoral District 2 (Nglipar, Ngawen, Patuk, Gedangsari).

Her name is not as widely discussed on social media or in mass media as her party colleague Endah. However, the election results placed her as the highest-vote PDIP politician among candidates in the same district. Mega is not very active on social media; from early to late July, her Instagram and TikTok activity looked quiet. Local mass media also gave her limited coverage.

Even so, across her July content, Mega consistently positions herself as “the people’s mouthpiece,” uploading community meetings themed as aspiration-gathering.

Popularity & Issues Raised

Media and social-media monitoring show clear differences among the four:

• Endah Subekti records high engagement on social media, especially TikTok and Instagram. Her frequent themes are local potential, regional culture, tourism, and village-development narratives. Sentiment is mostly positive, with some criticism on specific policies.

• Chisya Ayu had a strong digital footprint during the campaign, but her popularity graph declined after her media-center account went inactive. Issues she raises now appear more in DPRD forums without broad public resonance.

• Andriana Wulandari appears consistently in local news, often related to MSMEs and economic potential, but rarely amplifies messages through her personal channels. Public sentiment tends to be neutral-to-positive; digital engagement is low.

• Mega Nusantara Wati posts sparingly on personal social media, yet consistently shows her role as a conduit for public aspirations (videos of resident meetings). She gets limited attention overall, with high positive sentiment.

Quantitatively, Endah sits at the top of DIY-scale popularity across both mass media and social media. She blends strong offline presence with consistent digital message distribution, building a memorable image. Her strength lies in consistency and relevance: in today’s politics, messages cannot rely only on official meetings or roadside banners—she brings local issues onto digital stages in a form the public can easily digest.

From PDIP’s perspective, these findings carry a strategic message: female regional cadres who can manage digital communication have the potential to become significant political figures—capable even of competing in narrative terms with national-level personalities.

From Gunungkidul to Senayan (National Stage)

To broaden perspective, compare Endah with two women on the national stage: Puan Maharani (PDIP) and Tsamara Amany (former PSI).

Puan Maharani wields massive political networks, backed by her position as Speaker of the DPR. Social-media conversation volume about Puan remains the highest among the three—10,767 talks in the last 31 days—though it fell significantly versus the previous period. Interestingly, mainstream-media coverage of Puan rose 48.28%, indicating that exposure via formal channels remains strong even as organic social-media engagement weakens. Her public-perception score stands at 0.87—relatively low for a national figure—yet the upward trend shows image improvement.

Tsamara Amany offers a sharp contrast. No longer in party structure, she maintains her positioning as a progressive young politician. Her conversation volume (2,488) is far below Puan’s and Endah’s, but the nearly 100% increase in the past month shows her social appeal remains. Her public-perception reaches 1.94—the highest of the three—with dominant positive sentiment. Mainstream coverage is minimal (30 articles), indicating reliance on personal digital channels and direct audience engagement rather than major-media spotlight. Monitoring also detected four TikTok accounts affiliated with Tsamara.

Endah Subekti stands between these two ends. She records 5,902 conversations—up ~92%—supported by 391 news articles. While modest compared with Puan, her rise is consistent at the local level, occasionally reaching national outlets. The challenge lies in a public-perception score of 0.72, down 61.92% from the previous period. This may reflect mixed sentiment toward viral moments such as the “ashtray slam,” which grabbed attention but also stirred controversy. Her dominant platforms are TikTok and Instagram, aligning with a local base that favors visual content, cultural narratives, and regional topics like gatot, jamasan pusaka, and sedekah laut.

Analysis & Meaning of the Findings

The three figures demonstrate different political-communication patterns:

• Puan Maharani represents a top-down model: strong mainstream-news presence, a large party machine, and structural networks.
• Tsamara Amany relies on bottom-up social engagement, building a personal brand without depending on mainstream media.
• Endah Subekti takes a hybrid path—mixing local-media exposure with a personal narrative on social platforms—while still seeking balance between popularity and positive perception.

In brand-positioning terms, Endah’s approach is closer to Tsamara’s: active image-building on social media, using personal narratives, and packaging local issues into engaging stories. The difference: Tsamara plays on national issues and policy advocacy, while Endah focuses on cultural symbols and local wisdom.

Public perception becomes the critical indicator. Tsamara leads thanks to consistency and clear audience segmentation; Endah needs to manage her image so popularity isn’t eroded by controversy. Puan, despite a low perception score, retains structural strength that secures her position on the national stage.

Conclusion

Based on observation and data analysis, Endah Subekti Kuntariningsih is currently the most popular PDIP woman politician in DIY. She combines on-the-ground presence, command of local issues, and consistent digital communication.

Chisya Ayu, Andriana Wulandari, and Mega Nusantara each have their own assets—Chisya with a young progressive image, Andriana with a vocal and distinctive character, and Mega with steady grassroots engagement. All three, however, need to optimize public-communication strategy to broaden influence.

For PDIP, this is a golden opportunity to strengthen regional women cadres who have proven popular at their base. Local-based popularity is not only about electability at home; it can also serve as party ammunition on the national stage.

As in entertainment, popularity is capital that must be maintained. Endah has shown that a strategy blending tradition, personal narrative, and digital presence can propel a regional politician into the public spotlight. The question now: will Endah follow Tsamara’s path to build a national profile, or remain a strong local icon?