Mochamad Ridwan Kamil (born 4 October 1971), alternatively Kang Emil or RK, is an Indonesian architect and politician who was the 15th Governor of West Java, the largest (most populous) province of Indonesia.

Ridwan Kamil then continued his tertiary education at the Bandung Institute of Technology and graduated in 1995 with a Bachelor of Engineering degree in architecture.

[2] After completing his master's degree in US, Ridwan Kamil returned to Indonesia and became a non-permanent lecturer at the Bandung Institute of Technology for 14 years in the Architectural Engineering study program before finally entering the world of politics.

[10][11] He obtained Doctor (honoris causa) in Public Administration degree from Dong-a University in 2019 for his role in developing dynamic governance system for West Java Province.

[14] After working as an architect in Hong Kong, in June 2004 Kamil and his partners founded Urbane,[15] an architecture firm based in Bandung, West Java.

PKS and Gerindra experimented by offering a clean, telegenic candidate without political affiliation but with known professional achievements through his iconic designs.

Kamil, who until now is unaffiliated to any party, decisively defeated seven opponents in the race with 45% of votes, which almost tripled what his closest rival got, before becoming mayor of one of the most populous cities in Indonesia at the age of 42.

Kamil agreed to this arrangement, realizing he was popular among media-savvy urban voters, especially around Bandung, but weak among those who live in rural areas like Tasikmalaya.

[30] Kamil's victories in 2013 and 2018 proved that an unaffiliated candidate could win in Indonesian elections if the person has popular appeal, cultivated through strong media campaigns, and good communications with parties of all stripes.

Despite his Western education and pluralist attitudes, Kamil understands how to build rapport with Islamists in Indonesia, the country with the world's largest Muslim population, in particular in West Java that is known for its Islamic conservatism.

[34] Emil's candidacy is viewed as a strategic move due to his high popularity in Bandung as mayor and in West Java as governor.

In his campaign, he stressed the need for a healthy competition in a democracy, as he criticize the prospect of an election where only one candidate stands or having to face an empty ballot box.

[39] In one of his speech, Kamil claimed that he have given a 1 trillion rupiah grant to Nahdlatul Ulama, one of the biggest Sunni Islam movement in indonesia.

The West Java branch of Nahdlatul Ulama claimed that such speech could be interpreted as corruption and the missing funds could be classified as graft.

[47] In late December 2022, Reports emerged that Kamil is close to joining a political party with speculations that the move is part of his continued efforts to enter the presidential race.