Indonesia Vice President Gibran Resigns Over Diploma Row
Indonesia vice president Gibran resigns after court rulings found his school papers fell short of the rules for election. His aide confirmed the move on Wednesday, November 11, 2026, in a step that deepens a rift inside the ruling alliance.
Gibran Rakabuming Raka, 39, is the eldest son of former president Joko Widodo. He tendered his resignation to President Prabowo Subianto earlier on Wednesday, his aide Budi Arie Setiadi told Reuters. Two sources at the parliamentary upper house said he would submit his resignation letter to the house on Thursday morning.
Neither Gibran’s office nor Prabowo’s office responded at once to requests for comment.
The resignation followed rulings by Indonesia’s Constitutional Court and Supreme Court on Gibran’s secondary school qualifications. The courts found his education documents did not meet the requirements to stand for election in 2024.
Why Indonesia vice president Gibran resigns
The pressure built fast in the last two days. Gibran told Prabowo of his intention to resign during a meeting on Tuesday morning that lasted two and a half hours, presidential spokesperson Prasetyo Hadi said. Later that day, Gibran told reporters that Prabowo had advised him to keep fighting his case, including seeking a judicial review of a Supreme Court ruling.
Then, earlier on Wednesday, 120 lawmakers from all eight factions in Indonesia’s 580-strong House of Representatives signed a motion to exercise parliament’s right to express an opinion on Gibran’s qualifications. It was the first formal step towards impeachment, and it had been set for a plenary session on Thursday.
Mardani Ali Sera, one of the lawmakers who signed the petition, said Gibran “no longer meets the requirements as vice president as stipulated in Indonesia’s constitution”.
The court rulings behind the resignation
Indonesian election law requires vice-presidential candidates to have completed senior high school or an equivalent level of education. Gibran, who studied abroad, used an education equivalence certificate to meet that rule when he ran in the 2024 election alongside Prabowo.
On October 6, the Constitutional Court rejected a challenge to his candidacy for lack of legal standing. Yet the court appeared to agree that his documents did not amount to a senior high school-equivalent diploma.
On October 30, the Supreme Court accepted an appeal and invalidated the certificate. On Tuesday, November 10, it instructed the education ministry to withdraw the document, which the court had already annulled.
“No evidence was found to show Gibran had a foreign diploma or certificate that could serve as the basis for equivalency with a senior high school or equivalent qualification,” the court said in its ruling. The Supreme Court also took into account the Constitutional Court’s ruling, which said his education documents did not meet election requirements.
How a successor will be chosen
The parliamentary upper house will have to convene a session to declare a vacancy once it receives Gibran’s resignation letter. It will then write to the president and ask him to submit two names for a replacement, senior law minister Yusril Ihza Mahendra said.
After that, the upper house will hold an election within 60 days.
The resignation also threatens to split a key political alliance. Prabowo, a former general, twice lost presidential elections to Widodo before winning in 2024 with Widodo’s backing.
A candidacy dogged by controversy
Gibran’s place on the 2024 ticket drew complaints from the start. He was 36 when candidate registration opened in 2023, while election law required candidates to be at least 40.
On October 16, 2023, the Constitutional Court ruled by five votes to four that candidates under 40 could run if they had previously been elected as a regional head. Gibran had served as mayor of Solo. The court was led at the time by Anwar Usman, Widodo’s brother-in-law, who was later removed as chief justice for failing to recuse himself from the case.
The strain inside the alliance has grown in recent days. Prabowo sacked his chief of staff last week after the aide was arrested on accusations of bugging the president. The aide was widely seen as a loyalist of Widodo.
Sana Jaffrey, a researcher at the Australian National University, said: “Prolonged uncertainty at the highest levels of power will only deepen anxieties at home and abroad about where the country is headed.”
Indonesia is Southeast Asia’s largest economy, and its politics shape trade and security across the region. The week has also brought warnings from Iran over American bases in Europe, seven killed by Israeli fire in Gaza and the United States skipping a United Nations rights review. For now, though, Jakarta’s own crisis will decide who sits beside Prabowo.
Frequently asked questions
Why did Indonesia’s vice president resign?
Gibran Rakabuming Raka resigned after Indonesia’s Constitutional Court and Supreme Court ruled that his education documents did not meet the requirements to stand for election in 2024. His aide confirmed he tendered his resignation to President Prabowo Subianto on November 11, 2026.
Who is Gibran Rakabuming Raka?
He is the 39-year-old eldest son of former president Joko Widodo. He served as mayor of Solo before becoming vice president alongside Prabowo Subianto after the 2024 election.
What did the courts rule about his education papers?
The courts found no evidence that Gibran held a foreign diploma or certificate that could serve as the basis for a senior high school-equivalent qualification. The Supreme Court invalidated his education equivalence certificate on October 30, 2026.
Who chooses the next vice president?
The parliamentary upper house must first declare a vacancy. It then asks the president to submit two names, and the upper house holds an election within 60 days.
What happens next?
Gibran was expected to submit his resignation letter to the parliamentary upper house on Thursday morning, November 12. A motion of opinion signed by 120 lawmakers had also been set for a plenary session the same day.
