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Ruhut Sitompul (born 24 March 1954) is an Indonesian lawyer, politician and actor. He was elected twice into the People's Representative Council, in 2009 and 2014. As a lawyer, he handled many cases of high-profile politicians, and maintained a high-profile status in media himself, having gained popularity through his acting role in television.
Sitompul has married twice, with a son from his first marriage with Anna Rudhiantiana Legawati. His second marriage – which resulted in two other children – stirred controversy, as his first wife claimed to have never been legally divorced. His intellectually disabled first son Christian Sitompul from his first marriage is an athlete, and won a gold medal in swimming during the 2011 Special Olympics World Summer Games.
He also became an actor in the telenovela , playing "Poltak", an oil baron. He obtained the role as he was at the time a legal adviser to StarVision, Gerhana production studio. Though he was initially slated to play Poltak for just several episodes, his role was extended due to popularity with the audience. Later, in 2011, he starred in the religious film Sajadah Ka'bah.
Sitompul was also a cadre of Pemuda Pancasila.
In 2010, Sitompul proposed to allow the extension of presidential term limits permitting Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (SBY) to run for a third term, remarking that there were no suitable candidates. The proposition was challenged and attacked by many, including from Constitutional Court Chief Justice Mahfud MD, and Ruhut later noted that SBY rejected the idea.
For the 2017 Jakarta gubernatorial election, Sitompul endorsed and campaigned for the Basuki Tjahaja Purnama – Djarot Saiful Hidayat pair in direct opposition with his party, which supported Agus Harimurti Yudhoyono. Due to this, he was fired from the Democratic Party's supervisory board and he declared his intent to leave the legislative body. He officially resigned from the People's Representative Council in 2017 and was replaced by Abdul Wahab Dalimunthe. Despite so, he remained a member of the Democratic Party.
Sitompul joined Joko Widodo's 2019 presidential campaign team and did not run for a legislative seat.
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