Celvin Sipahutar, Jakarta – The three political parties that nominated Anies Baswedan for the presidency will maintain their collaboration for the Jakarta gubernatorial election in November, with a strong likelihood of his securing the nomination again.
Anies is currently trailing Prabowo Subianto by approximately 33 points in the Feb. 14 presidential election. If these results stand, he will be eligible to contest the Jakarta governor position, which he held from 2017 to 2022.
Executives from the National Democratic Party (Nasdem), the National Awakening Party (PKB), and the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) gathered in Jakarta on Friday evening to solidify their continued collaboration until the November election.
"The meeting tonight is a testament to our strong commitment to maintaining the coalition until the regional leader election, starting with Jakarta," Nasdem Secretary-General Hermawi Taslim said in a news conference after the meeting at Nasdem Tower.
"A meeting like this will be held regularly – next week at the PKS office and the following week at the PKB office, and so on."
The Muslim-based PKS was quick to signal a preference for Anies for a second term as Jakarta governor, but a formal nomination cannot be made until the official vote tally from the presidential election is concluded by the General Election Commission (KPU).
"I met with Mr. Anies yesterday and informed him that we are waiting for a formal announcement by the KPU before confirming whether we will nominate him again for Jakarta governor," said Khoirudin, the chairman of the PKS Jakarta chapter. "Mr. Anies is certainly an asset for Jakarta and for Muslims."
Nasdem has proposed three executives for the Jakarta election, including Wibi Andrino, Oki Asokawati, and Ahmad Sahroni.
The PKB, meanwhile, has mentioned two party members as potential candidates to contest the gubernatorial election, namely elected lawmaker Hasbiallah Ilyas and Manpower Minister Ida Fauziah.
"We have plenty of potential candidates for the Jakarta governor position," said PKB Secretary-General Hasanudin Wahid.
After the presidential and legislative elections, Indonesia is gearing up for another colossal election to elect governors in 38 provinces, regents in 416 regencies, and mayors in 98 cities across the country on November 27.
The KPU is scheduled to formally announce the results from the presidential and legislative elections on March 20.