Nominations for candidates to fill the Indonesian vice presidency vacated by new president Megawati Sukarnoputri will be formalized late Tuesday with parliament voting Wednesday, officials said.
"The registration of candidates for vice president opens at 7:00 PM (1200 GMT)," said Noer Jana, an official at the national assembly's protocol office.
The assembly, the country's highest legislature, will choose the new vice president on Wednesday, two days after Megawati was elevated to the presidency and her predecessor Abdurrahman Wahid impeached, Jana and MPs told AFP.
Already in the race are Golkar party chief Akbar Tanjung and head of the Muslim United Development Party (PPP) Hamzah Haz.
Tanjung confirmed his candidacy on Monday, while the PPP will formally announce Haz' candidacy when registrations open, PPP secretary-general Ali Marwan Hanan told AFP.
Two retired generals, both ministers under Wahid, have also been mooted as possible candidates.
Former chief security minister Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, once touted as a future military commander, was being promoted by four professional associations, the Jakarta Post reported.
Yudhoyono's replacement after he was sacked by Wahid in June, Agum Gumelar, has also been mentioned in the local media as a possible candidate.
Both ex-generals are considered reformist and have been widely praised for their performance as ministers -- JAKARTA (AFP)
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