REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA -- The coalition parties supporting incumbent President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) for winning next year's presidential election remained firm. They were unaffected by the political moves of the pro-Prabowo Subianto camp, a senior politician stated.
"The pro-Jokowi camp remains solid," General Chairman of the National Awakening Party (PKB) Muhaimin Iskandar informed journalists after attending the opening ceremony of the International Toys and Kids Expo here on Thursday.
Iskandar noted that the recent meeting of Great Indonesia Movement (Gerindra) Party Chief Patron Prabowo Subianto with General Chairman of the Democratic Party Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (SBY) for building a coalition did not affect the solid stance of the pro-Jokowi camp.
Instead, the pro-Jokowi camp members have continued to work closely with measured actions in their efforts to enable the incumbent president to be reelected in the 2019 presidential election, he noted.
On Tuesday, General Chairman of the People's Conscience Party (Hanura) Oesman Sapta Odang noted that Jokowi will announce his running mate for next year's presidential election in early August. He said Jokowi and the coalition party leaders have come up with one name.
"We are just waiting for the official announcement that he will make around next week plus two or three days. He will do it at the appropriate time," he stated.
He noted that the leaders of the People's Democratic Party of Struggle, Golkar Party, PKB, Muslim-based United Development Party, National Democrat Party, and Hanura had agreed to let Jokowi decide his running mate.
Odang, however, was reluctant to clarify the name of the most potential running mate for Jokowi. He argued that the five coalition party leaders had pledged not to leak it to the public prior to official announcement.
Earlier, local media reports recently revealed that PPP General Chairman Muhammad Romahurmuziy, Golkar Party Chairman Airlangga Hartarto, and PKB General Chairman Muhaimin Iskandar were among the potential running mates of Jokowi.
Meanwhile, Jokowi admitted that among of the names that still being discussed with his party are West Nusa Tenggara Governor Tuan Guru Bajang (TGB) Zainul Majdi, former Constitutional Court chairman Mahfud MD, and Golkar Party chairman Airlangga Hartarto.
Jokowi mentioned those names after attending the Public Lecture of State Defense Academy of the NasDem Party. A number of party leaders also attended the event and several figures, including Airlangga, Mahfud, and TGB. Jokowi was asked by the reporters whether the three figures were included in his running-mate candidates list.
"Yes, they are on the list because the candidates certainly more than one," said Jokowi on Monday (July 16).
Widodo's toughest rival in the 2019 presidential election remains the Gerindra Party Chief Patron Prabowo Subianto, who is still looking for the most potential running mate from parties, such as the Democratic Party. The eldest son of former president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, Agus Harimurti Yudhoyono, has been mentioned by both mainstream and social media to be Subianto's most potential vice presidential candidate.
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