Reformist Joko Widodo won the Indonesian presidential election last week, defeating former Gen. Prabowo Subianto, a member of the country's traditional power establishment. Joko's victory is expected to help consolidate the democratization process that has continued since Suharto resigned as president in 1998 after holding office for 31 years. But he is likely to face tough resistance as he pushes forward with his reform agenda. Perseverance and the formation of a strong Cabinet with the ability to get things done will be key to his success.

A former furniture maker, Joko was born to a poor family in the city of Solo in central Java. Known as a clean politician, he fought for democratization and the eradication of corruption as mayor of Solo and governor of Jakarta. During the campaign, Joko said that corruption, greed and a tendency to make light of laws, which originated in the Suharto years, remain problems and in some cases have grown worse. In contrast, Prabowo, a son of an economist who served as a Cabinet minister under Suharto, studied in the United States as a military officer and was married to Suharto's younger daughter. He was forced to resign from the military over his suspected involvement in the kidnapping of a pro-democracy activist.

Although Joko won 53.15 percent of the vote, he encountered into his first post-election difficulty when Prabowo filed a legal challenge with the Constitutional Court, alleging misconduct in the vote count. While the results are not likely to be overturned, the court won't reach a conclusion until late August and Joko is expected to be sworn in on Oct. 20.