The policy shift opens the door for Prabowo’s presidential election rival Anies Baswedan to be nominated for Jakarta governor, a post he held from 2017 to 2022, but also means Jokowi’s 29-year-old son Kaesang Pangarep cannot run in regional polls.
On Sunday, the election body attended a hearing with the parliamentary commission overseeing election issues to secure the lawmakers’ approval before issuing the new rules.
Law minister Supratman Andi Agtas said in the same hearing the government will help to speed up the process to issue the new regulations.
The labour party is scheduled to hold a protest again on Sunday, demanding the election body issue the new rules soon.
The popularity and outsized influence of Jokowi, as the president is known, after a decade in charge was instrumental in Prabowo winning February’s election by a big margin, in what was widely seen as a quid-pro-quo to ensure the outgoing leader retains a political stake long after he leaves office.
