His Instagram page, where he shares his daily activities, is followed by 4.8 million people. Then, there is his YouTube channel -- where he logs in his routines to over a million viewers, on top of an additional 2.5 million followers on Twitter. 

Firman Noor, the director of the Indonesia Institute of Sciences (LIPI) Center for Political Studies, said that Ganjar’s popularity could be largely attributed to his online success, or more specifically, an effective public-relations team.

“It is true indeed that his public-relations team has been pretty successful. It is possible for politicians to get additional support from social media, regardless of their achievements,” Firman told The Jakarta Post on Thursday. 

Ganjar started building his online presence at least a decade ago, where he would interact directly with his followers to answer their concerns. 

This personal approach to leadership has worked in his favor to grow a slow, yet steady base of supporters. His signature tagline has stayed consistent throughout the years: Tuanku ya rakyat, gubernur hanya mandat (my overlord is the people, the governorship is but a mandate). 

The social media platforms also became Ganjar’s avenue to share his public activities -- such as when he does his blusukan (impromptu informal visits) rounds, gives public lectures at various universities or when he gives spontaneous handouts to mostly younger children. 

Dedi Kurnia Syah, executive director of Indonesia Political Opinion (IPO), has marked Ganjar’s social media presence as one of the primary reasons for his reputation.

“You can see that Ganjar’s self-promotion online is quite aggressive, predominantly oriented toward his personal branding, not his work as governor,” said Dedi to Tempo. 

While Ganjar’s online persona has been a successful public relations feat, Firman noted this strategy can be considered “manipulative”. The fact is, Central Java remains one of the poorest provinces in Indonesia, prone to infrastructural failings and repressions of protests. 

“Such irony that he is not particularly outstanding in terms of achievements. He was not even successful in dealing with floods. The way he dealt with protestors in Wadas is reminiscent of [Soeharto’s] New Order era. There is violence and coercion,” he noted. 

The fact that Ganjar was thriving as one of the most popular contenders for 2024’s presidency was a sign that most people are “not well informed [about Ganjar’s] whole story”, Firman added, and that archaic strategies to win over popularity -- blusukan, feigning modesty, gifting -- still persist in Indonesia. 

“This is a concern among many people that those who promote Ganjar are motivated by emotional sentiments instead of rational choice. He does appear benevolent,” the researcher said.

Causing strains

The Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) cadre has been reported to cause a rift in the party, as his popularity has been perceived to injure House of Representatives Speaker Puan Maharani’s chances of being nominated for the 2024 presidential election. 

This internal rivalry between Ganjar and Puan was brought to the surface once more when President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo, in a rally hosted by Projo last month, hinted at his support for Ganjar in running for the 2024 presidential election. 

Jokowi’s blessing prompted the Projo crowd to cry out Ganjar’s name, precipitating yet another round of quips from his PDI-P colleagues. 

Ganjar, with his “superstar” reputation on social media, has also been accused of putting his personal interests before PDI-P’s by independently amassing a vast supporter base in the virtual world, effectively mauling any other cadre’s chances in the party at overshadowing his popularity.  

Following Jokowi’s not-so-subtle endorsement about three weeks ago, Ganjar has warned his supporters to steer away from feeling overconfident. He insists that since Jokowi did not name him directly, business should go on as usual as if nothing had happened.

“Jokowi had been signaling that he prefers Ganjar to succeed him after his term ends. It is as if his supporters now must march behind Ganjar,” said Firman. 

Since the event, Ganjar has been seen around mingling almost exclusively with Jokowi, the president’s eldest son and Surakarta Mayor Gibran Rakabuming, as well as Coordinating Maritime Affairs and Investment Minister Luhut Binsar Panjaitan. 

Firman noted that it was likely that Ganjar’s strategy was to solidify his internal support before making big moves. 

“I think it is a fair assumption that he would want to strengthen his internal consolidation before making any external decisions. It is possible that after this phase, he would spread his wings even further,” he said.