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PDI-P shuts door on Anies reelection bid
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Jakarta gubernatorial candidate pair Cabinet Secretary Pramono Anung (right) and actor Rano Karno (left) walk to the podium after registering their candidacy for the Jakarta election at the Jakarta office of the General Elections Commission (KPU) on Aug. 28, 2024. (Antara/Fauzan)
T
he Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) has opted to nominate a candidate from its own party for Jakarta governor, effectively barring former governor Anies Baswedan from seeking reelection in the city this year.
The PDI-P, the only party expected to be in opposition to the coalition of parties supporting president-elect Prabowo Subianto, nominated the in-house pairing of Cabinet Secretary Pramono Anung and actor Rano Karno, who officially registered their candidacy with the Jakarta office of the General Elections Commission (KPU) on Wednesday.
The move came despite earlier reports suggesting that the PDI-P would endorse Anies for Jakarta governor, a prominent regional leadership post considered a springboard to the presidency, to try to beat a candidate pair favored by President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo and president-elect Prabowo.
Speaking to reporters before heading to the KPU’s Jakarta regional office, Pramono said he was only informed of his candidacy on Monday, a day before registration opened.
Pramono acknowledged that he had previously wished Anies well in his future candidacy, but declined to answer whether PDI-P had been planning to nominate Anies before naming him as the party’s Jakarta gubernatorial candidate.
Read also: PDI-P steps up to the plate to challenge KIM dominance in regional polls
"If I'm being honest, I kept resisting running and kept trying to refuse [when asked] to join the race. However, the final decision was made yesterday afternoon when [PDI-P chair] Bu Megawati asked me to run,” Pramono said, adding that he “didn't expect it, didn't ask for it, and never hoped for it”.
