Indonesia election 2024: woman whose ‘words carry weight’ could determine winner of presidential polls
- Khofifah Indar Parawansa, governor of East Java, is once again seen as instrumental to a presidential victory – just as she was to Joko Widodo’s second term
- A senior leader in the largest Islamic organisation in the world’s biggest Muslim nation, Khofifah has thrown her support behind former general Prabowo Subianto
East Java, home to 31 million voters and a traditional electoral bellwether, voted for Jokowi, as the outgoing leader is popularly known, in the last two elections.
The three contenders for the top job – Defence Minister Prabowo Subianto and former regional governors Ganjar Pranowo and Anies Baswedan – had all sought her endorsement. After weeks of deliberations, on January 10, Khofifah threw her support behind Prabowo, the former military general, who leads in polls and rose through the powerful military under the patronage of the late dictator Suharto.
Khofifah’s backing of Prabowo may prove pivotal, amid local media reports that Ganjar and Baswedan may be trying to form an alliance to prevent an outright victory for Prabowo in the elections scheduled for February 14 and force a run-off in June. Prabowo, who polled at 46.7 per cent in a December survey by Indikator Politik Indonesia, must secure at least 50 per cent of the national ballots to succeed Widodo. If not, the top two candidates will battle in a run-off.