Two sets of candidates are running for the election. The previously elected mayor,
Dzulmi Eldin, had been arrested on graft charges in October 2019. •
Bobby Nasution (
PDI-P), property businessman and son-in-law of president
Joko Widodo, with city councillor Aulia Rachman (
Gerindra) as running mate, • Akhyar Nasution (
Demokrat), acting mayor of Medan and formerly elected as deputy mayor, with provincial legislator Salman Alfarisi (
PKS) as running mate. Akhyar was formerly a member of
PDI-P, but left the party due to PDI-P's decision to nominate Bobby for the mayoral race. Outside of PDI-P and Gerindra, Bobby was also endorsed by
PAN,
Golkar,
Nasdem,
PSI,
Hanura and
PPP, while Akhyar was supported by just Demokrat and PKS. ==Campaign==