ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Polit. Sci.
Sec. Elections and Representation
This article is part of the Research TopicPolitical Communication Strategies and the Instrumentalization of Hate Speech in Electoral CampaignsView all 4 articles
Survey as an Instrument of Power: A Discourse Analysis of Knowledge Production by Survey Institutions in Indonesia from the Perspective of Michel Foucault
Provisionally accepted
- 1Department of Islamic Theology and Philosophy, Universitas Islam Negeri Sunan Kalijaga, Yogyakarta, Indonesia
- 2Universitas Gadjah Mada, Yogyakarta, Indonesia
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This article offers a conceptual perspective on the practices of electability survey institutions in Indonesia as instruments of power, employing a Foucauldian Critical Discourse Analysis lens. Illustrative materials are drawn from the electability survey results during the 2023–2024 period and their media representations, including visuals and public comments on digital platforms. Through a discourse-oriented reflection, the article argues that linguistic constructions and numerical visualizations constitute a "regime of truth" that normalizes political reality: statistics appear as objective facts that function as "performative facts," shaping voter preferences and disciplining political subjects. Mainstream media often reproduce survey results without critical scrutiny, thereby reinforcing the hegemony of survey discourse. Although fragments of resistance emerge in public responses, polling discourse remains upheld as a dominant reference in political communication. As a conceptual perspective, this article does not aim for empirical generalization but to illuminate how Foucauldian notions of power/knowledge can enrich critical understandings of survey practices. Recommendations include promoting transparency in polling procedures, strengthening public data literacy, and encouraging comparative and qualitative inquiries that further explore the power mechanisms of surveys in democratic contexts.
Keywords: discourse and power, electability surveys, Michel Foucault, political communication, Regime of truth
Received: 30 Sep 2025; Accepted: 17 Dec 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Aswar, Mutiullah, Fahrozi, Sari, Ismail and Anggraini. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Aswar Aswar
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