Sofifi, North Maluku's Capital Elections, Conflict, Devolopment 1999-2007

This paper discusses the debate in determining the capital of North Maluku province. In determining the position of the capital of North Maluku province, there was an interesting interest among local elites in North Maluku, including Sofifi, Goal, Ternate, and Sidangoli. The problem did not stop when Sofifi finally decided to become the capital of North Maluku Province. The location of Sofifi which is too close to Ternate and the reluctance of Tidore Islands to release Sofifi become an autonomous city becomes an obstacle to the development of Sofifi infrastructure as the capital of North Maluku, coupled with political and natural resource issues. This study is a contemporary historical study using interviews and local newspapers as sources. The data is processed by historical method. This study concludes that Sofifi's election as Tim Sembilan (Team Nine) lobbies with the central government influence the capital. In addition, the stalled development and autonomy of Sofifi is due to the strong socio-economic influence of Ternate City and Tidore Islands City in North Maluku. This study contributes to the history of the formation of the North Maluku and the history of local politics in Indonesia.