Anita Rachman & Nurfika Osman – Political analysts don't see anyone among the current figures gunning for chairmanship of the Democratic Party capable of filling President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's shoes.

Three names have dominated coverage of the race to chair the Democratic Party: House Speaker Marzuki Alie, Sports and Youth Affairs Minister Andi Mallarangeng, and the Democrats' House faction leader, Anas Urbaningrum.

Last Sunday, Andi formally announced his candidacy for chairman, which will be decided at the party's national congress in May. Present at Andi's campaign launch was the president's son, lawmaker Edhie Baskoro Yudhoyono, who said the candidate was the right man to lead the Democrats.

But Lili Romli, a political analyst at the Indonesian Institute of Sciences, said on Friday that party cadres and sympathizers would expect someone with the qualities of Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to run the party and join the presidential race in 2014. And the three candidates so far are all less experienced than the president.

"This is indeed a challenge for all candidates: People are expecting someone like Pak SBY," he said. "However, it is too early to state who is the toughest candidate of all, and who likely could best rule the party."

Arbi Sanit, a political expert at the University of Indonesia, told the Jakarta Globe that the Democrats needed someone not only to lead the party but to develop it, and none of the three candidates had that quality.

"All of them are way out of Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's league and they are definitely not going to dominate the 2014 election," he said. "Someone who has good managerial skills is needed, as the party is still lacking this."

Democrat Pieter Zulkifli, a member of the House of Representatives' Commission III, which oversees legal and political affairs, also said he and several of his colleagues had not seen anyone who was strong enough to take on the party mantle.

"Whoever the candidate is, should have a strong character, strong integrity, morals, dedication to the job, and the most important thing is to have a good managerial system," Pieter said.

He said he thought someone from the military would be able to lead the party, as Democrats needed someone with good managerial skills to handle the many tough tasks in the country.

"Partnering the leader from military with someone from a civilian background seems to be good," he said.