List of leaders of the Russian SFSR

List of leaders of the Russian SFSR details the individuals who held the highest state offices in the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic from its establishment after the October Revolution to its dissolution in 1991. The nature of the leadership position evolved significantly, transitioning from a collective Presidium chairmanship to a powerful executive presidency. This list encompasses the heads of state under the Russian Constitution of 1918, the 1937 Constitution of the Russian SFSR, and the 1978 Constitution of the Russian SFSR, culminating with the office's holder becoming the first President of Russia following the dissolution of the Soviet Union.

Chairmen of the All-Russian Central Executive Committee (1917–1938)

The initial head of state was the Chairman of the All-Russian Central Executive Committee, a body derived from the Congress of Soviets. The first chairman was Lev Kamenev, appointed days after the Bolsheviks seized power in Petrograd. He was quickly succeeded by Yakov Sverdlov, whose tenure saw the consolidation of Bolshevik rule during the Russian Civil War and the signing of the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk. Following Sverdlov's death, Mikhail Kalinin assumed the role, serving through the period of the New Economic Policy and the early phases of Joseph Stalin's leadership, including the collectivization in the Soviet Union and the Great Purge. This period ended with the adoption of a new constitution.

Chairmen of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet (1938–1990)

Under the new 1937 Constitution of the Russian SFSR, the head of state became the Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the Russian SFSR, a largely ceremonial post. Mikhail Kalinin continued in this role until 1946, leading the republic through the Great Patriotic War. He was followed by a series of chairmen including Nikolay Shvernik, Ivan Vlasov, and Mikhail Yasnov. The lengthy tenure of Vladimir Orlov spanned much of the Leonid Brezhnev era, a period of Era of Stagnation. His successors, Mikhail Solomentsev and Vitaly Vorotnikov, served during the reforms of Mikhail Gorbachev and the policies of perestroika and glasnost.

Chairmen of the Supreme Soviet (1990–1991)

In 1990, constitutional reforms established the Congress of People's Deputies, which elected a Chairman of the Supreme Soviet of the Russian SFSR. This position held significant legislative and executive power. Boris Yeltsin was elected to this post, marking a direct challenge to the authority of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union and Mikhail Gorbachev. Yeltsin's tenure was defined by the Declaration of State Sovereignty of the Russian SFSR, the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt, and the escalating War of Laws between the Russian and Union governments.

Presidents (1991)

The office of President of the Russian SFSR was created in 1991, transforming the republic's governance into a presidential system. Boris Yeltsin won the inaugural 1991 Russian presidential election by a decisive margin. His presidency was immediately consumed by the final crisis of the Soviet Union, culminating in the Belovezh Accords with Leonid Kravchuk of Ukraine and Stanislav Shushkevich of Belarus, which dissolved the USSR. Yeltsin's tenure as Russian SFSR president ended on 25 December 1991, when the republic was renamed the Russian Federation and he continued as its president.

Category:Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic Category:Heads of state of Russia Category:Lists of political office-holders in Russia