This pioneering study of the Indonesian presidency significantly redefines our understanding of Indonesian politics from independence to the present. Angus McIntyre blends political biography with constitutional history to locate Indonesian leaders within both Indonesian cultural frameworks and the global biographical literature on political leaders. The Indonesian Presidency shows how Indonesia's 1945 constitution provided first for the personal rule of presidents Sukarno and Soeharto and then facilitated the shift towards constitutional rule that marked the presidencies of B.J. Habibie, Abdurrahman Wahid, and Megawati Sukarnoputri. This important study elevates the personalities of Sukarno and Shoeharto into key explanatory factors for the character of their "Guided Democracy" and "New Order" regimes, respectively. It argues that in 1959 Sukarno began fashioning his system of personal rule, to the detriment of Indonesia's parliamentary democracy. Another constitutional turning point occurred in 1998, when a rudimentary constitutional rule reappeared. The broad shift since 1998 from personal to constitutional rule has its personal counterpoint in the relationship between Megawati and her father, which makes this unique blend of history and biography a powerful tool for understanding the Indonesian presidency. An afterword by the author on the website for The Indonesian Presidency, http://www.rowmanlittlefield.com/isbn/0742538273, brings readers up to date on Indonesian political developments that have affected the presidency since the book's publication. An afterword by the author on the website for The Indonesian Presidency, http://www.rowmanlittlefield.com/isbn/0742538273, brings readers up to date on Indonesian political developments that have affected the presidency since the book's publication.

Chapter 1 Introduction Chapter 2 The Return to the 1945 Constitution Part 3 Part I Chapter 4 The Personal Rule of Sukarno Chapter 5 Suffering from the Quiet: Sukarno's Desolation and His Politics of Being Central Chapter 6 Aging and Fear of Death: Sukarno's Politics of Rejuvenation and His Quest for Immortality Chapter 7 Sukarno: Abandoned by History? Part 8 Part II Chapter 9 The Personal Rule of Soeharto Chapter 10 Soeharto's Composure Part 11 Part III Chapter 12 Megawati and the Emergence of Constitutional Rule Chapter 13 Childhood and Youth of Megawati Sukarnoputri Chapter 14 Megawati Sukarnoputri's Political Apprenticeship Chapter 15 Challenging Soeharto Chapter 16 The Fall of Soeharto Chapter 17 Democracy Returns Chapter 18 A Female President? Chapter 19 Megawati Sukarnoputri as Vice President Chapter 20 President Megawati Sukarnoputri Chapter 21 Conclusion Chapter 22 Postscript: The Indonesian Parliamentary Elections of 2004