Indonesian opposition party nominates Jakarta governor Jokowi for president

JAKARTA - Indonesia's main opposition PDI-P party on Friday named Jakarta's hugely popular governor, Joko Widodo, as its candidate for this year's presidential election.

Opinion polls show Jokowi, as he is popularly known, far in front in the race for president. The election is on July 9.

In just over a year as governor of the Indonesian capital Jakarta, he has won national popularity for his straight forward style.

"We are nominating Jokowi as presidential candidate," Hasto Kristianto, vice-secretary general of the Indonesian Democratic Party-Struggle (PDI-P) told Reuters.