It was held to elect the governor of East Kalimantan along with their deputy, whilst members of the provincial council (Dewan Perwakilan Rakyat Daerah) will be re-elected in 2019.

With incumbent Awang Faroek Ishak having served two terms, former regent of East Kutai won a four-way race with 31 percent of the votes.

Other candidates are mayors of Samarinda Syaharie Ja'ang and Bontang Andi Sofyan Hasdam, in addition to the provincial secretary Rusmadi Wongso.

Hasdam initially ran with Nasdem member Nusyirwan Ismail, but the latter passed away before the election and was replaced by Rizal Effendi, Balikpapan mayor.

[10] His running mate Awang Ferdian Hidayat was a People's Representative Council member from PDI-P.[11] Former regent of East Kutai, Isran Noor, received the backing of Gerindra, PAN, and PKS.