Five years ago, Nambar Enkhbayar was at the peak of his political career. He was president of Mongolia, enjoyed widespread popularity and had already served his country as prime minister and speaker of parliament. World leaders courted him and global corporations begged for an audience as Mongolia sat on the precipice of a mining boom.
Today, he holds no political post, is routinely skewered in the media for controversial behaviour and is about to go on trial for corruption in the highest-profile case ever held in Mongolia. His physical appearance is gaunt and frail, in stark contrast to the broad-shouldered form he exhibited just a few years ago.
And yet through all of this, he remains the most popular politician in the country and an influential power broker in Mongolia's complicated political hierarchy.
Last month, Enkhbayar's Justice Coalition scored surprisingly well in parliamentary elections, winning 11 of the 76 seats in the Great Hural, a strong showing for its first ever appearance in any election.
The Democratic Party won the election with 31 seats, slightly ahead of the 25 seats won by the incumbent Mongolian People's Party (MPP). But no party won the required 39 seats needed to form a government, so the Democrats must seek support from rival parties to form a coalition government. Speaking after the election, Enkhbayar said he would consider a coalition government if the Democrats came calling.
'It is a possibility. We would have to see what the main principles needed to form a coalition would be. They would have to be good, transparent principles accepted by the general public,' he said.