JAKARTA: Indonesian Vice President Gibran Rakabuming Raka resigned on Thursday amid a scandal over his academic qualifications, adding to a series of political upheavals in Southeast Asia’s largest economy.

The 39-year-old son of former President Joko Widodo formally delivered his resignation letter to the People’s Consultative Assembly, or MPR, the country’s highest legislative body, setting in motion a process to elect a successor who will serve the remainder of the term ending in 2029. 

“During the meeting, Gibran conveyed the reason he came to meet with the leadership of the People’s Consultative Assembly, which is to deliver a letter of resignation from his role as the vice president of Indonesia,” MPR Speaker Ahmad Muzani told reporters. 

MPR leaders will meet to prepare to convene a session to determine the next steps, which will involve the president nominating two candidates. 

“Under our constitution, there are 60 days following the resignation to select a vice president to replace Gibran,” Muzani added. 

Gibran resigned after the Constitutional Court and the Supreme Court ruled last month that his academic credentials, which he submitted for his vice presidential candidacy and is required under Indonesian law to run for office, did not meet election requirements. 

He has faced calls to resign for weeks, including more than 120 lawmakers at the House of Representatives calling for his impeachment. 

In a press conference held alongside Gibran and other officials on Thursday afternoon, Prabowo said he had accepted the letter of resignation earlier that morning “with a heavy heart,” adding that he “respected and supported” the decision. 

Gibran was elected as Indonesia’s youngest vice president in 2024, with his candidacy being possible only because the Constitutional Court — at the time headed by Widodo’s brother-in-law — made a controversial decision to decrease the minimum age requirement for the role. 

His resignation is a “logical consequence” from the constitutional issue that first arose from his candidacy, said Titi Anggraini, a lecturer of constitutional law at University of Indonesia. 

“This resignation is proof that the issues surrounding his candidacy from the outset were too significant to continue being ignored,” she told Arab News. 

“When the constitutional legitimacy of a position continues to be called into question — whether through legal or political channels — the scope of retaining that position only narrows.” 

Anggraini called attention to the process that is set to unfold in the coming days to elect a new vice president and the reality that the position under Prabowo’s leadership has largely been ineffective, and lacks actual influence. 

“Even with a new vice president, it’s hard to expect any change as long as Prabowo’s current style of leadership remains in place,” she said. 

Gibran’s resignation comes as thousands of protesters have taken to the streets in recent weeks to protest economic hardship, corruption, increasing authoritarianism and the government’s failure to contain months of devastating wildfires that are emitting toxic haze in Kalimantan, Sumatra and Papua. 

Two years into Prabowo’s presidency, a national survey by pollster Saiful Mujani Research and Consulting puts his approval rating at 44.5 percent in October, compared to 81.2 percent in November 2025. 

Also on Thursday, the Indonesian rupiah fell to an all-time low against the dollar, dropping to as much as 18,253, past its previous record low of 18,190 seen in early June. 

Gibran stepping down also adds to a fraying political alliance between Prabowo and Widodo. After defeating him twice for the top office, Widodo had endorsed Prabowo as his successor upon facing presidential term limits and had his son Gibran running on the same ticket in 2024. 

A significant rift emerged earlier this month when authorities arrested several officials, including Prabowo’s chief of staff and former police chief Listyo Sigit Prabowo, who is seen as close to Widodo, for allegedly wiretapping the president and other top officials and public figures. 

“I see the relationship as fractured. It’s not looking good given the context of Gibran stepping down and also the wiretapping case,” Ujang Komarudin, political scientist and lecturer at University of Al-Azhar Indonesia, told Arab News. 

“The political alliance has become strained, effectively broken, between Prabowo and (Widodo).”