Indonesia's vice president, Gibran Rakabuming Raka, handed his resignation to parliament's upper house, ending days of speculation about his political future. The move is Indonesia's highest-profile resignation since that of President Suharto in 1998. Gibran, 39, arrived at parliament in Jakarta, met leaders for 20 minutes and asked that the resignation be processed, according to Ahmad Muzani, speaker of the upper house. Muzani read out the letter, saying Gibran made the decision "through my own volition ... for the interests of the government and nation." Senior law minister Yusril Ihza Mahendra said Gibran quit for personal reasons and cited "growing public sentiment" in a letter of just five paragraphs.

The resignation followed a push by lawmakers to impeach Gibran over inadequate educational credentials, and rulings by the Constitutional Court and the Supreme Court that his overseas high school qualifications fell short of legal requirements for vice presidential candidates. Those rulings found the qualifications had been wrongly accepted by election authorities. Gibran was elected alongside Prabowo in the 2024 election, during which his father, former President Joko Widodo, was accused of meddling by influencing a court decision that changed the election rules, enabling Gibran to stand.S1S2

Widodo, known as Jokowi, voiced support for the current leader, Prabowo Subianto, telling reporters outside his home in Solo in central Java: "We will continue to support President Prabowo's administration, especially programmes that serve the interests of the broader public." Prabowo said he accepted the resignation with a "heavy heart" and praised Gibran's work across Indonesian regions. Analysts had warned that the rift between Prabowo and Jokowi, who twice defeated the former general before backing him in the face of term limits, could further destabilise the government.S1S2

The political strain comes as Prabowo's government faces scandals over its signature programmes and doubts about its ability to manage Southeast Asia's biggest economy, where turmoil has sapped investor sentiment. Scrutiny is growing over fiscal plans and broader policy direction, and downgrade risks still linger for the stock market. The rupiah weakened as much as 0.6% to a fresh record low of 18,255 against the dollar.S1S2

Parliamentary leaders will now discuss next steps. The upper house must hold a session to declare a vacancy and send the president a letter seeking the names of two replacement candidates, Yusril said. An upper house election will follow within 60 days.S1