An intriguing court decision in Indonesia


Indonesia’s constitutional court upheld on Monday a rule that presidential and vice-presidential candidates must be at least 40 years old. But it then carved out an exemption for younger candidates with experience in office.

Where’s the intrigue? 

  • President Widodo’s son (36) is rumoured to be eyeing a run for VP
  • A party now chaired by his other son co-filed the case, and
  • Widodo’s brother-in-law heads up the court that made the decision.

And this all fuels speculation that he’s seeking to establish a political dynasty.

Intrigue’s take: Widodo, who remains popular but is term-limited, continues to shrug off the speculation while declining (🇮🇩) to discuss the court case.

And he himself signed (🇮🇩) the electoral age limit into law back in 2017.

But we won’t have to wait long to see how this all pans out: nominations for February’s general elections open tomorrow (Thursday).

Also worth noting:

  • In explaining its exemption, the court referred to examples of leaders in France and New Zealand being elected while in their 30s.
Latest Author Articles
Three big escalations for Iran

Welcome to day seven of the Third Gulf War which (per a line via Holly Dagres) is now more of a Gulf War than the first two Gulf Wars. Right now, the three big questions revolve around succession, secession, and suppression (always applaud outstanding alliteration). So let’s start with… Any list of folks denied their […]

6 March, 2026
Three things you need to watch in Iran

Again, with everything shifting so rapidly, here’s your quick recap since our last briefing: So with that quick update, here are the three things you need to track ahead:  If 2024 was the year of the Red Sea, and 2025 was the year of the Panama Canal, 2026 is shaping up as the year of […]

4 March, 2026
The mystery of Cuba’s deadly shootout

A speedboat, heavily-armed men, Cuban sunsets, soaring stakes. This is not Denis Villeneuve pitching his next Bond, but actual events from Wednesday. That’s when the communist-run island’s interior ministry issued a note detailing an intriguing incident involving a Florida-tagged speedboat. According to Cuba’s account… Then a few hours later, Havana dropped a second note, adding […]

27 February, 2026
The US and Iran are back on the brink

The weekend is rolling around, which in recent times has meant one of two things: a) Sabrina Carpenter is about to unveil her latest brand collab, or b) the US is about to launch its latest daring military operation. As much as we’re keen to explore Sabrina’s Pringle-scented Redken hair mist and Dunkin’ x Prada […]

20 February, 2026