# List of presidents of Russia

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. 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. 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.

## Presidents

Nonpartisan         CPSU         NDR         OVR         Unity         United Russia         Acting PMs :
| | 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) (8 years, 174 days) | 1 (1991) | Chairman of the Supreme Soviet of Russia (1990–1991) | Ivan Silayev |
| 1 | Boris Yeltsin Борис Ельцин 1931–2007 | 10 July 1991 – 31 December 1999 (resigned from office) (8 years, 174 days) | 1 (1991) | Chairman of the Supreme Soviet of Russia (1990–1991) | Himself |
| 1 | Boris Yeltsin Борис Ельцин 1931–2007 | 10 July 1991 – 31 December 1999 (resigned from office) (8 years, 174 days) | 1 (1991) | Chairman of the Supreme Soviet of Russia (1990–1991) | Yegor Gaidar |
| 1 | Boris Yeltsin Борис Ельцин 1931–2007 | 10 July 1991 – 31 December 1999 (resigned from office) (8 years, 174 days) | 1 (1991) | Chairman of the Supreme Soviet of Russia (1990–1991) | Viktor Chernomyrdin |
| 1 | Boris Yeltsin Борис Ельцин 1931–2007 | 10 July 1991 – 31 December 1999 (resigned from office) (8 years, 174 days) | 2 (1996) | Chairman of the Supreme Soviet of Russia (1990–1991) | Viktor Chernomyrdin |
| 1 | Boris Yeltsin Борис Ельцин 1931–2007 | 10 July 1991 – 31 December 1999 (resigned from office) (8 years, 174 days) | 2 (1996) | Chairman of the Supreme Soviet of Russia (1990–1991) | Sergei Kiriyenko |
| 1 | Boris Yeltsin Борис Ельцин 1931–2007 | 10 July 1991 – 31 December 1999 (resigned from office) (8 years, 174 days) | 2 (1996) | Chairman of the Supreme Soviet of Russia (1990–1991) | Viktor Chernomyrdin |
| 1 | Boris Yeltsin Борис Ельцин 1931–2007 | 10 July 1991 – 31 December 1999 (resigned from office) (8 years, 174 days) | 2 (1996) | Chairman of the Supreme Soviet of Russia (1990–1991) | Yevgeny Primakov |
| 1 | Boris Yeltsin Борис Ельцин 1931–2007 | 10 July 1991 – 31 December 1999 (resigned from office) (8 years, 174 days) | 2 (1996) | Chairman of the Supreme Soviet of Russia (1990–1991) | Sergei Stepashin |
| 1 | Boris Yeltsin Борис Ельцин 1931–2007 | 10 July 1991 – 31 December 1999 (resigned from office) (8 years, 174 days) | 2 (1996) | Chairman of the Supreme Soviet of Russia (1990–1991) | Vladimir Putin |
| 2 | Vladimir Putin Владимир Путин Born 1952 (age 72) | 7 May 2000 – 7 May 2008 (acting from 31 December 1999) (8 years, 128 days) | 3 (2000) | Prime Minister of Russia (1999–2000) | Vladimir Putin |
| 2 | Vladimir Putin Владимир Путин Born 1952 (age 72) | 7 May 2000 – 7 May 2008 (acting from 31 December 1999) (8 years, 128 days) | 3 (2000) | Prime Minister of Russia (1999–2000) | Mikhail Kasyanov |
| 2 | Vladimir Putin Владимир Путин Born 1952 (age 72) | 7 May 2000 – 7 May 2008 (acting from 31 December 1999) (8 years, 128 days) | 3 (2000) | Prime Minister of Russia (1999–2000) | Mikhail Fradkov |
| 2 | Vladimir Putin Владимир Путин Born 1952 (age 72) | 7 May 2000 – 7 May 2008 (acting from 31 December 1999) (8 years, 128 days) | 4 (2004) | Prime Minister of Russia (1999–2000) | Mikhail Fradkov |
| 2 | Vladimir Putin Владимир Путин Born 1952 (age 72) | 7 May 2000 – 7 May 2008 (acting from 31 December 1999) (8 years, 128 days) | 4 (2004) | Prime Minister of Russia (1999–2000) | Viktor Zubkov |
| 3 | Dmitry Medvedev Дмитрий Медведев Born 1965 (age 59) | 7 May 2008 – 7 May 2012 (4 years, 0 days) | 5 (2008) | First Deputy Prime Minister of Russia (2005–2008) | Vladimir Putin |
| 4 | Vladimir Putin Владимир Путин Born 1952 (age 72) | 7 May 2012 – Present (12 years, 306 days) | 6 (2012) | Prime Minister of Russia (2008–2012) | Viktor Zubkov |
| 4 | Vladimir Putin Владимир Путин Born 1952 (age 72) | 7 May 2012 – Present (12 years, 306 days) | 6 (2012) | Prime Minister of Russia (2008–2012) | Dmitry Medvedev |
| 4 | Vladimir Putin Владимир Путин Born 1952 (age 72) | 7 May 2012 – Present (12 years, 306 days) | 7 (2018) | Prime Minister of Russia (2008–2012) | Dmitry Medvedev |
| 4 | Vladimir Putin Владимир Путин Born 1952 (age 72) | 7 May 2012 – Present (12 years, 306 days) | 7 (2018) | Prime Minister of Russia (2008–2012) | Mikhail Mishustin |
| 4 | Vladimir Putin Владимир Путин Born 1952 (age 72) | 7 May 2012 – Present (12 years, 306 days) | 8 (2024) | Prime Minister of Russia (2008–2012) | Mikhail Mishustin |

## Acting presidents

Nonpartisan      NDR      Unity :
| Acting President | Term of office | Main post | Notes |
| Alexander Rutskoy Александр Руцкой Born 1947 (age 77) | 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 72) | 31 December 1999 – 7 May 2000 | Prime Minister | Acting president after Yeltsin's early resignation. |

## Subsequent public service

Two presidents held other high offices after leaving the presidency.
| President | Presidency | Subsequent service |
| Vladimir Putin | 2000–2008 | Prime Minister (2008–2012) |
| Vladimir Putin | 2000–2008 | President (2012–present) |
| Dmitry Medvedev | 2008–2012 | Prime Minister (2012–2020) |
| Dmitry Medvedev | 2008–2012 | Deputy Chairman of the Security Council (2020–present) |