Although he was not their first choice as presidential candidate, Egypt's powerful Muslim Brotherhood soon threw its weight behind the chairman of its Freedom and Justice Party (FJP), Mohammed Mursi.
The 60-year-old engineer took 24% of vote in the first round of the election in May, with second place going to Ahmed Shafiq, a former air force chief who served briefly as former President Hosni Mubarak's last prime minister.
In the run-off, he took 51.73% of the vote.
Mr Mursi promises to bring "stability security, justice and prosperity" after a year of political upheaval.
He has said that it is time to put into practice the Brotherhood's famous slogan - "Islam is the solution" - and described its policy plans as having "a moderate Islamic reference".
Mr Mursi handed in his nomination papers for the presidential race on the last possible day after it emerged that Khairat al-Shater, a millionaire businessman and deputy leader of the Brotherhood, might be prevented from running.
After Mr Shater and other candidates were disqualified, the Brotherhood officially shifted its support to Mr Mursi.
There were doubts over whether the more quietly-spoken man would be able to establish himself among voters.
However Mr Mursi was guaranteed the support of the Brotherhood's grassroots network and highly organised campaign team. This led the FJP to success in the recent parliamentary elections, winning the biggest number of seats in both the upper and lower houses.
Mr Mursi has struggled to overcome accusations that the Brotherhood wants to monopolise the political scene.
The group decided to field a candidate for the presidency despite earlier promising it would not. It was also criticised for using its parliamentary strength to try to dominate a 100-member assembly drawing up the new constitution.
Mr Mursi argues that the Brotherhood has had to respond to changing realities and "dangers threatening the revolution".
After protests over the results of the presidential election first round and an attack on Mr Shafiq's campaign headquarters, Mr Mursi tried to swing the situation to his advantage.
He offered concessions to groups that felt disenfranchised and presented himself as a bulwark against any revival by the Mubarak old guard.
He insisted he wanted to build a "democratic, civil and modern state" that guaranteed the freedom of religion and right to peaceful protest.
Mr Mursi said he would not necessarily choose a prime minister from the largest party in parliament - the FJP - and suggested he would appoint Coptic Christians among his presidential advisers, and even possibly as a vice-president. He said an Islamic dress code would not be enforced.
"The presidency will be an institution," Mr Mursi declared. "The Superman era is over."
He has tried to reach out to other reform-minded politicians ahead of the run-off. However, a meeting with the third- and fourth-placed presidential candidates - the leftist, Hamdeen Sabahi, and moderate Islamist, Abdul Moneim Aboul Fotouh - did not produce a deal that would encourage broader support for him.
The Brotherhood's presidential platform has placed its "Renaissance Project" centre-stage.
It is a comprehensive plan meant to provide solutions for Egypt's manifold problems: from an overhaul of the economy and security services to dealing with the sanitation problem of rubbish in the streets.
No clear plan has been spelt out for how Mr Mursi would deal with the armed forces, which have been overseeing the political transition.
However, he has said he would consult them over a choice of defence minister and that the military budget would be overseen by parliament.
He has also insisted that he would maintain his independence if elected to office, dismissing the idea that he would take orders from the Brotherhood's supreme guide and turn Egypt into a theocracy.
On the sensitive subject of Israel, Mr Mursi has said he would abide by the 1979 peace treaty but not meet Israeli officials. He has promised to prioritise the Palestinian issue.
Mohammed Mursi comes from a village in the Nile Delta province of Sharqiya and is married with four children.
He studied Engineering at Cairo University in the 1970s before moving to the United States to complete a PhD.
After returning to Egypt he became head of the engineering department at Zagazig University. He also rose in the ranks of the Muslim Brotherhood and joined its Guidance Bureau.
Mr Mursi served as an independent in the Brotherhood's parliamentary bloc from 2000 to 2005. He then lost his seat in his home constituency, after a run-off vote that he claimed was rigged.
As an MP, he was occasionally praised for his oratorical performances, for example after a rail disaster in 2002 when he denounced official incompetence.
He was chosen to be a spokesman for the Brotherhood and last year, after the uprising forced Hosni Mubarak to step down, he became chairman of the FJP.
With his calm, measured approach, Mr Mursi tends to chime with the conservative mainstream of the Brotherhood. Many insiders see him as a safe pair of hands.
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