Jokowi’s son to run for Indonesian V-P with former rival Prabowo

Anti-dynasty sentiment means Gibran Rakabuming Raka may not be the slam-dunk vote winner hios boosters imagined.

Flanked by sombre members of his coalition outside his Jakarta home, Prabowo Subianto announces Gibran Rakabuming Raka as his running mate on Sunday.

Indonesia’s 2024 presidential election is shaping up as a battle between two dynasties after defence minister and third-time hopeful Prabowo Subianto finally named the son of his former rival, President Joko Widodo, as his running mate.

The worst-kept secret in Jakarta was confirmed Sunday night in a surprisingly low-key announcement by frontrunner Prabowo in which his vice-presidential pick Gibran Rakabuming Raka, the Mayor of Solo, was notably absent.

“The Indonesia Forward coalition committee have all agreed to support Prabowo Subianto as presidential candidate and Mr Gibran Rakabuming Raka as the vice-presidential candidate,” the 72-year-old said outside his Jakarta residence, surrounded by sombre-looking members of his coalition.

“I believe this is the announcement that everyone has been waiting for.”

The declaration ends months of speculation ahead of February’s three-way election contest, and completes a remarkable shift in political alliances after the bruising 2019 race between Mr Prabowo and Jokowi.

Mr Prabowo has pushed hard for Mr Gibran’s candidacy as a way of securing the support of Jokowi, whose popularity hovers around 81 per cent despite being in the last lame duck year of his second and final term.

But Team Prabowo’s distinct lack of cheer at Sunday’s announcement suggests Gibran may not be the slam-dunk candidate he was previously thought to be.

His selection raises a slew of questions – most pointedly over what role the outgoing Jokowi played in catapulting his 36-year-old son into the candidacy.

The path was cleared for Mr Gibran to run only after the Constitutional Court last week controversially amended election criteria to allow candidates under the age of 40 who have held elected positions to run for office.

Gibran Rakabuming Raka stands with students outside the regional House of Representatives in Solo on Friday. Picture: AFP

The court’s chief judge Anwar Usman — Jokowi’s brother-in-law — refused to recuse himself in a tight 5-4 decision despite the conflict of interest. The ruling has not gone down well with the Indonesian public and, in the week since the decision, posters demanding “Reject Dynastic Politics” have cropped up across the country.

The court dismissed further petitions on Monday; one calling for an age limit of 70 for presidential candidates, another to block candidates for high office with a track record of human rights abuses. Mr Prabowo was dismissed from military service in 1998 amid claims that as special forces commander he was complicit in the kidnapping of pro-democracy activists.

Academics, lawyers, activists and students have accused the constitutional court of legalising dynastic politics by amending electoral eligibility to suit Mr Gibran. Indonesia’s Tempo Magazine reported on Monday that Indonesia Forward coalition leaders had been “taken aback” by the criticism, and the delay in announcing Mr Gibran’s selection was a result of second thoughts among the six parties, which include Mr Prabowo’s Gerindra and former president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono’s Democrats.

To join Mr Prabowo’s ticket, Mr Gibran must now forfeit his membership of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDIP) —parliament’s largest party led by Megawati Sukarnoputri, the daughter of independent Indonesia’s first president Sukarno — which has supported Jokowi’s presidency for nine years.

Megawati _ who has clashed repeatedly with Jokowi _ has made that clear, though whether Mr Gibran’s candidacy also leads to Jokowi’s excommunication from the PDIP is less obvious given the two sides’ co-dependence, at least until the end of his presidency next October.

The PDIP has already registered its presidential candidate team; former central Java governor Ganjar Pranowo and national security minister Mahfud MD, one of Indonesia’s most senior cabinet figures.

Former Jakarta governor Anies Baswedan is also contesting the election _ though at a distant third in polls owing to voter fears he could take Indonesia in a more hard-line direction _ with Islamic scholar Muhaimin Iskandar.

Ahead of Prabowo’s Sunday announcement, Jokowi insisted his son made his own decisions and “as a parent our task is only to pray and give our approval (to our children)”.

Yet an editorial on ANU’s EastAsiaForum blog site on Monday said the outgoing president had come “to embrace the idea (of his son’s candidacy) with the zeal of the convert”.

Mr Gibran’s appointment makes some sense given Mr Prabowo must make inroads with Jokowi voters in Java, where Mr Ganjar is dominant, in order to win office. “Getting the Jokowi seal of approval in this way would, however, be a double-edged sword for Prabowo.”

Attacks on Mr Prabowo’s complicity in dynasty-building could gain momentum ahead of a likely June second round run-off, when he will need the votes of anti-Jokowi diehards now rallying behind Mr Anies.