Anita Rachman, Jakarta – The biggest question facing the opposition Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle is who the party will nominate as its presidential candidate for 2014.

Debate has begun to heat up after Taufiq Kiemas, husband of former president and current party chairwoman Megawati Sukarnoputri, said his wife would most likely not seek Indonesia's highest office again.

Taufiq on Tuesday said his wife would turn 67 in 2014. "There should be a regeneration," he said, adding that a presidential candidate should ideally be between 40 and 50 years old.

Taufiq, a party stalwart who is also the speaker of the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR), said his wife "will probably not run" after having lost in two earlier presidential elections in 2004 and 2009.

Effendi Simbolon, vice chairman of the party, which is also known as the PDI-P, said that nothing was final. "Pak Taufiq was trying to give a picture of how the situation would be in 2014. But so far, there have been no official talks about it in the party."

But while the pros and cons of another Megawati run may have not been discussed officially, party insiders and analysts are already floating another potential candidate with name recognition: Megawati's daughter, Puan Maharani.

Effendi on Wednesday said chances were high that Puan would run in 2014. "Mbak Puan is capable and is one of our brightest members. Three years is enough to boost her credibility and capacity."

Puan, 37, heads the PDI-P's political affairs department. She was elected to the legislature in 2009, and currently serves as a member of House Commission VI, which oversees state enterprises.

Speaking separately, PDI-P House Secretary Bambang Wuryanto also said that Puan was a likely candidate to run in 2014. "Seeing the trend, it is very possible [that Puan will be nominated]," Bambang said.

He said Puan had garnered the highest number of PDI-P votes in the 2009 legislative election. He also praised her tireless efforts at local-level party initiatives. "And last but not least, she is the only daughter of the MPR speaker and party chairman."

M. Qodari, a political observer from polling firm Indo Barometer, said Puan appeared the likeliest PDI-P member to seek the presidency.

Qodari said Puan would be a strong candidate inside the party due to the fact that Sukarno, the country's founding president, was her grandfather. "Sukarno's name is still PDI-P's attraction," Qodari said.

However, he told the Jakarta Globe that according to an Indo Barometer survey, Megawati was still quite popular among voters.

But he added that it would be better if the PDI-P did not rely solely on Megawati's recognition. He said preparing her successor while gauging her electability was an important strategy.

Yunarto Wijaya, a political analyst from Charta Politika, said 2014 would be a crucial point for the PDI-P, deciding whether it insisted on relying on a political dynasty or was willing to evolve into a modern party.

He added that the party should begin shedding its dependency on the Sukarno dynasty and start promoting its promising young politicians. He cited members such as deputy House speaker Pramono Anung, House Commission II deputy chairman Ganjar Pranowo and Maruarar Sirait, PDI-P chairman for youth and sports affairs.

"[But] it is better to keep Megawati [rather than promoting Puan] if they insist on using the Sukarno connection," Yunarto said.