1990 Soviet Union presidential election

1990 Soviet Union presidential election

14 March 1990

Candidate Mikhail Gorbachev Party CPSU Electoral vote 1,329 Percentage 72.86%

President before election Office established Elected President Mikhail Gorbachev CPSU

The 1990 Soviet Union presidential election was held in the Soviet Union on 14 March 1990 to elect a president for a five-year term. This was the first and only presidential election to be held in the Soviet Union. This was due to the office of president being established in 1990, a year before the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991. The elections were uncontested, with Mikhail Gorbachev, then-General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union as the only candidate.^[1][2][3]

Although the constitution required the president to be directly-elected,^[4] it was decided that the first elections should be held on an indirect basis as it was necessary for a president to be elected immediately and processes taking place in the country did not leave time for elections to be held.^[5]