Jakarta. The General Election Commission (KPU) has established the minimum age requirement for gubernatorial candidates at 30 years old by the inauguration date of the election winner.

The decision aligns with a Supreme Court ruling issued last month. The previous regulation also set the minimum age requirement at 30, but it was based on the date the KPU formally announced the eligible candidates.

This development is crucial for Kaesang Pangarep, the youngest son of President Joko Widodo, who is expected to contest the gubernatorial election in Central Java or Jakarta.

Kaesang, born on Dec. 25, 1994, will meet the age requirement by the time elected governors in simultaneous elections are sworn in on January 1, 2025.

Under the previous regulation, however, he wouldn’t have been eligible to contest because the KPU's announcement of eligible candidates was scheduled for September 22, when he would still be 29.

The minimum age requirement for regent and mayor candidates is set at 25.

In amending the method to determine the minimum age, the Supreme Court argued that it increases the chances for more potential candidates for governors, mayors, regents, and their running mates to contest the simultaneous elections on November 27.

The ruling was issued after the Supreme Court accepted a motion by the Garuda Party disputing the age requirement.