TheJakartaPost
Please Update your browser
Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.
Jakarta election: Three newcomers fight in closely watched contest
Against the backdrop of delays on the capital city relocation plan, around 8 million voters will head to Jakarta polling stations on Nov. 27 to elect a new governor, in a race where all candidates are relatively unpopular with the city’s residents. The winner will lead the city in what might be its first five years of Jakarta’s post-capital era.
Change text size
Gift Premium Articles
to Anyone
Share the best of The Jakarta Post with friends, family, or colleagues. As a subscriber, you can gift 3 to 5 articles each month that anyone can read—no subscription needed!
Jakarta gubernatorial candidates Ridwan Kamil (fifth left) and his running mate Suswono (fourth left), Dharma Ponrekun (fifth right) and running mate Kun Wardana (fourth right) and Pramono Anung (third right) and running mate Rano Karno (second right) pose with officials from the Jakarta General Elections Commission (KPU) during the peaceful campaign declaration for the 2024 Jakarta gubernatorial election at the Jakarta History Museum in Kota Tua in West Jakarta, on Sept. 24. (Antara/Herjoko Bald)
Jakarta may no longer be the nation’s capital in the future, but the gubernatorial position in the province remains one of the most high-profile positions up for grabs when the country holds its biggest single-day regional elections in November.
The regulations for the capital city transfer have been prepared, with the House of Representatives enacting the National Capital City (IKN) Law, but the official handover from Jakarta to Nusantara Capital City in East Kalimantan has missed its deadlines, as President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo has not yet issued a decree on the capital relocation citing unfinished construction.
Against the backdrop of delays on the capital city relocation plans, around 8 million voters will head to Jakarta polling stations on Nov. 27 to elect a new governor, in a race where all candidates are relatively unpopular with the city’s residents. The winner will lead the city in what might be its first five years of Jakarta’s post-capital era.
Audition for presidency?
With the capital relocation to Nusantara hanging in limbo, the Jakarta gubernatorial seat will continue to be one of the most strategic and highly sought after positions in the November elections. Experts and politicians alike widely regard the gubernatorial position as a launchpad for entry into the national political scene.
Jokowi once held the Jakarta governor position for two years before running in, and eventually winning, the 2014 presidential election.
Even if Jakarta loses its capital status, observers believe the gubernatorial seat will remain influential as the city remains the country’s business, finance and tourism hub. Home to 11.4 million people, Jakarta is the country’s most densely populated city and contributes nearly 17 percent to the national economy.
