Campaigning gets under way in Indonesia for February presidential election

JAKARTA — Campaigning for Indonesia's presidential election was officially under way on Nov 28, with two of the three candidates kicking off two months of whistle-stop touring to woo voters in a race to lead the world's third-largest democracy.

Indonesia holds presidential and legislative elections on Feb 14, with Defence Minister Prabowo Subianto, former Central Java governor Ganjar Pranowo, and former Jakarta governor Anies Baswedan vying to replace the hugely popular outgoing leader Joko Widodo after a decade in power.

Recent surveys have showed former special forces commander Prabowo leading, with Mr Ganjar second and Mr Anies a distant third.

Mr Ganjar, the ruling party's candidate, will begin his campaign in the easternmost Papua province, with running mate Mahfud MD starting at the westernmost province of Aceh.

Mr Anies is set to meet voters in and around the capital Jakarta, with his running mate, Mr Muhaimin Iskandar, in East Java’s Surabaya.

Mr Prabowo and his vice-presidential pick Gibran Rakabuming Raka, the eldest son of President Widodo, will start their campaign at a later date.

The candidates will appear in debates organised by the General Elections Commission in the coming weeks, with no schedule unveiled so far.

About 205 million of Indonesia’s more than 270 million population are eligible to vote in the election.

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