Rusli Zainal (born 3 December 1957) is an Indonesian former politician convicted of corruption who served two terms as Governor of Riau between 2003 and 2013.

As a child, Zainal took part in the Indonesia International Quran Competition at the national level, representing Riau.

[1] Zainal ran as a candidate for Riau's governor in the 2003 election, unexpectedly securing a victory against incumbent Saleh Djasit with 34 out of 54 votes from the provincial legislature.

[4] On 8 February 2013, he was named a suspect by the Corruption Eradication Commission for bribery related to the 2012 National Sports Week event, and he was officially detained after questioning on 14 June 2013.

[6] His tenure as governor was terminated due to the case on 12 November 2013, eight days before its supposed date,[7] and the Pekanbaru District Court sentenced him to 14 years in prison on 12 March 2014.