Joko Widodo

Biography

Joko Widodo, widely known as Jokowi, was born in Surakarta in 1961 and studied forestry at Gadjah Mada University. After a spell with a state paper company in Aceh he set up a teak furniture business in his home city, became an exporter and by 2002 chaired the local furniture manufacturers' association.

He joined the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle in 2004 and was elected mayor of Surakarta in 2005, winning a second term with about 90 percent of the vote. His hands-on style of unannounced neighbourhood visits made him a national figure, and in 2012 he defeated the incumbent to become governor of Jakarta.

In 2014 he beat Prabowo Subianto for the presidency, becoming the first Indonesian president from outside the political and military elite, and he defeated Prabowo again in 2019. His two terms emphasised roads, ports and other infrastructure, wider social welfare and a plan to move the capital to Nusantara; critics pointed to his use of the death penalty, curbs on civil liberties and a weakened anti-corruption commission.

Near the end of his presidency he backed Prabowo, with his son Gibran as running mate, in the 2024 election, which led to his expulsion from his party. In 2025 he joined the Indonesian Solidarity Party.