Despite his relatively short time in office, Gibran's impact on Surakarta has been significant, leading to him being named the most popular mayor in 2021, according to the Indonesia Indicator.

The Constitutional Court, led by his uncle Anwar Usman, allowed him to run by making an exception for elected regional leaders.

Gibran was born in Surakarta, Central Java, on 1 October 1987, as the eldest child and son of Joko Widodo and Iriana who have three children.

[6] After graduating from secondary school, Gibran enrolled in UTS Insearch, the pathway program (preparatory cources) for foreign students who want to study at the University of Technology Sydney in Australia, but decided to move back to Singapore for his college undergraduate education.

Jokowi, who intended for Gibran to inherit the leadership of his furniture business, initially opposed his eldest son's decision to become a caterer.

[11] In July 2019, Gibran was named a favorite candidate for the 2020 Surakarta mayoral election, according to a survey by Slamet Riyadi University based in the city.

[13] PDI-P officially endorsed Gibran as their mayoral candidate in July 2020, pairing him with city council speaker Teguh Prakosa.

Besides benefitting from his status as the son of the incumbent president and the city's most popular former mayor, Gibran's campaign spent nearly 30 times more compared to Bagyo's.

This recognition is attributed not only to his close relationship with his father, President Joko Widodo, but also to his proactive steps in addressing the impact of COVID-19 and promoting policies that garnered substantial media coverage.

As the Constitutional Court under Anwar Usman's leadership has ruled that he can run for vice president through an exception for elected regional leaders,[23] Gibran's eligibility for candidacy has been challenged repeatedly.

The KPU was found to have committed ethics violations surrounding Gibran's vice-presidential registration for allowing him to register his candidacy before the commission had adjusted the age minimum for candidates in its internal regulation.

[40] At the Vice presidential candidate debate on 21 January 2024 at the Jakarta Convention Center, Gibran wore a blue jacket with the Naruto anime logo and the words 'Samsul' on the back.

[41] Arief Rosyid, Chairman of TKN Fanta Prabowo-Gibran election team backtracked and reclarified that the meaning of the words 'Samsul' written on the back of the jacket was instead an acronym for semakin sulit disusul (lit.

[61] Gibran's favorite anime series are Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba and The Adventures of Tintin,[62] but he often uses Naruto in his appearance to the media.

[63][64][65] As the vice president of Indonesia, Gibran is automatically bestowed the highest class of six out of seven civilian Star Decorations (Indonesian: Tanda Kehormatan Bintang), namely:[66]