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fter being named official candidates for the country'€™s first ever simultaneous elections for regional heads (Pilkada), to be held on Dec. 9, candidates with backgrounds as graft suspects or former graft convicts have said they believed that their controversial track records would not hamper their chances of winning elections.

On Monday, the General Elections Commission (KPUD) in 262 regions announced the names of regional head candidates deemed eligible to run in their respective local elections after verifying supporting documents submitted by all aspiring candidates.

The Sabu Raijua KPUD in East Nusa Tenggara, for example, has named Regent Marthen Dira Tome an eligible candidate for the upcoming local election in the regency despite his status as a graft suspect.

On Friday, Marthen was questioned by Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) investigators in Jakarta for 12 hours for his alleged involvement in the misappropriation of education funds at the East Nusa Tenggara Education and Culture Agency in 2007 to a tune of Rp 77 billion (US$5.5 million).

Marthen, however, said his status as graft suspect would not affect his reelection campaign. He also said that he was eager to win the upcoming election.

'€œI'€™m not bothered by the matter. People were happy enough to give their ID card copies to support my reelection bid. They want me to lead Sabu Raijua again for the next five years,'€ said Marthen, who is running with Nikodemus Rihi Heke as an independent candidate.

In Semarang, Central Java, former mayor Soemarmo Hadi Saputro, who was dismissed from office in 2012, also confidently welcomed his return to the campaign race.

In 2012, the Jakarta Corruption Court sentenced Soemarmo Hadi Saputro to 18 months in prison for giving gratuities to local councilors.

'€œI'€™m sorry we were unable to continue developing the city some time ago. That'€™s why we need to rise again to develop the city,'€ he said on Sunday in front of his supporters.

In South Sulawesi, Barru Regent Andi Idris Syukur, who has been named a suspect in a graft case by the National Police'€™s Criminal Investigation Corps (Bareskrim), has also received clearance for his reelection bid.

'€œPak Idris'€™ status as a graft suspect does not influence his candidacy as regional head because the status of suspect is not included in KPU regulation No. 9 and 12/2015. He has met the requirements for regional head,'€ Barru KPUD head Syarifuddin Ukkas said.

Elsewhere, the hopes of a number of potential candidates to contest the Pilkada were dashed as they were deemed to have failed to meet the requirements stipulated by Pilkada organizers.

In South Solok regency, West Sumatra, independent candidates Boy Iswarmen and his running mate Fachri Murad, were disqualified by the local KPUD for not being able to provide proof of support from at least 19,550 people, as stipulated by the KPUD.

The Denpasar KPUD in Bali, meanwhile, declared that the commission would reopen the registration period for mayoral candidate as only one candidate who had registered with the commission was eligible for the election.

'€œAs only one candidate is left for the election, we will reopen the registration period for other candidate. If there are no candidates who come forward during the registration period, the election will be postponed until 2017 as stipulated on the regulation,'€ the head of Denpasar KPUD, I Gede John Dharmawan, told journalists after a commission meeting on Monday.

As many as 466,115 Denpasar residents are expected to vote for their new mayor in December.

Andi Hajramurni in Makassar, Syofiardi Bachyul Jb in Padang and Ni Komang Erviani in Denpasar contributed to the article