The office of the president of Russia is the highest authority in the Russian Federation. The holder is the federation's head of state and has formal presidency over the State Council as well as being the commander in chief of the Russian Armed Forces. The office was introduced in 1918 after the February Revolution with the current office emerging after a referendum of 1991.[1] During the Soviet period of history, Russia was de jure headed by collective bodies such as the All-Russian Central Executive Committee and the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet, since the Soviet theory of government denied the very necessity of the presidential office. The office of the President of the Soviet Union was introduced in 1990 during Mikhail Gorbachev's unsuccessful reforms of the Soviet Union's one-party communist state. Gorbachev became first and last president of the Union.[2] His tenure was marked by the legal and political confrontation with Russia and other republics of the USSR which eventually led to their full independence in late 1991.
See main article: article and President of Russia.
| Portrait | President | Term of office | Term | Previous office | Prime Minister | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Boris Yeltsin Борис Ельцин 1931–2007 | 10 July 1991 – 31 December 1999 (resigned from office) | 1 (1991) | Chairman of the Supreme Soviet of Russia (1990–1991) | ||||
| 2 (1996) | ||||||||
| height=10px style="background:#E6E6AA" | ||||||||
| 2 | Vladimir Putin Владимир Путин Born 1952 (age) | 7 May 2000 – 7 May 2008 | 3 (2000) | Prime Minister of Russia (1999–2000) | ||||
| 4 (2004) | ||||||||
| 3 | Dmitry Medvedev Дмитрий Медведев Born 1965 (age) | 7 May 2008 – 7 May 2012 | 5 (2008) | First Deputy Prime Minister of Russia (2005–2008) | ||||
| (2) | Vladimir Putin Владимир Путин Born 1952 (age) | 7 May 2012 – present | 6 (2012) | Prime Minister of Russia (2008–2012) | ||||
| 7 (2018) | ||||||||
| 8 (2024) | ||||||||
See main article: article and Acting President of Russia.
| Portrait | Acting President | Term of office | Main post | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alexander Rutskoy Александр Руцкой Born 1947 (age) | 22 September – 4 October 1993 | Vice President | Acting president during the 1993 constitutional crisis. His powers were not recognized by Boris Yeltsin. | ||
| Viktor Chernomyrdin Виктор Черномырдин 1938–2010 (aged 72) | 5–6 November 1996 | Prime Minister | Acting president during Boris Yeltsin's heart surgery. | ||
| Vladimir Putin Владимир Путин Born 1952 (age) | 31 December 1999 – 7 May 2000 | ||||
Two presidents held other high offices after leaving the presidency.
| President | Presidency | Subsequent service |
|---|---|---|
| Vladimir Putin | 2000–2008 | Prime Minister (2008–2012) |
| President (2012–present) | ||
| Dmitry Medvedev | 2008–2012 | Prime Minister (2012–2020) |
| Deputy Chairman of the Security Council (2020–present) |