Among the more than 200 local elections to be held in September, one that has attracted national curiosity is the mayoral election in Surakarta, also known as Solo, in Central Java. This midsized town of some 500,000 people and one of the cultural centers of Javanese heritage is central to Joko “Jokowi” Widodo’s political rise to the highest office in the country. The then-furniture businessman became the first directly elected mayor of the city in 2005 and after seven years of leading it, won Jakarta’s gubernatorial election, before being elected president in 2014. This time around, Gibran Rakabuming Raka, Jokowi’s eldest son, is following in his father’s footsteps by running for mayor. As a political novice, he will face institutional and electoral hurdles. While he could gain support from the central board of the Indonesian Democratic Party...

Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not reflect the official stance of The Jakarta Post.