The agreement gives the soldiers some clout, which is almost certainly to Golkar's advantage.
With its nationwide dominance, Golkar could win a plurality in 30-40% of the 300-plus districts.
But neither incumbency nor Golkar's backing is a guarantee of victory, as Mr Sondakh's defeat illustrates.
The Golkar campaign has been lacklustre, little more than a few tired slogans about continuing development.
Although he has since left the cabinet, other members of Golkar are still in it.
So Golkar's leader, the current vice-president, Jusuf Kalla, will remain on the Yudhoyono ticket.
The same day, the ruling party, Golkar, listed 14 criteria for a vice-presidential candidate.
Anyone wanting to move ahead in Golkar will have little choice but to toe his line.
Voters may yet punish Golkar, which is split over which candidate to back as president.
Locals said Golkar officials had promised more of the same if the party won.
In one incident, she says, Golkar officials availed themselves of soft loans via government economic agencies.
In the remote village of Girikerto near Jogjakarta, Golkar supporters reportedly went door-to-door distributing money.
With its money and organisational advantage, Golkar will still be the force to be reckoned with.
As the days passed, some feared that Golkar had been up to its tricks again.
Golkar, Indonesia's former ruling party, selected General Wiranto as its presidential candidate for elections in July.
His eldest daughter Siti Hardiyanti Rukmana is chairwoman of the central board of ruling party, Golkar.
It might produce a split within Golkar, which would also be a good thing.
Provinces that had been squarely in Golkar's camp in April's election swung to Mr Susilo.
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For Golkar, leaving the government would make it easier to address the process of reform and restructuring.
The larger PDI-P and Golkar may obstruct his efforts to reform the economy and the justice system.
That offers the prospect that she may turn out the ruling Golkar party after decades in power.
Indeed, Golkar is aiming to win as many as 60% of the 470-odd jobs on offer around Indonesia.
Mr Kalla also says that he will reshuffle the leaders of the many parliamentary commissions that Golkar controls.
The second is a rift within Golkar, which is led by Akbar Tanjung and Marzuki Darusman, his deputy.
Although it had enough votes to pass the election bills on its own, Golkar was determined to appear co-operative.
Golkar wanted this applied to the districts, but the opposition feared it would work in the ruling party's favour.
"A Gus Dur-Megawati ticket is probably something Golkar could live with, " says Marzuki Darusman, leader of Golkar's reform wing.
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Things might eventually become easier for Mr Yudhoyono if Golkar's leadership changes at a party congress later this month.
Others argue that it does not matter if Golkar wins again, provided the voting is reasonably open and fair.
Opposition groups now worry that disreputable Golkar supporters could adopt even uglier tactics.
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