President of the Soviet Union
In 1990, Mikhail Gorbachev created the office of the President of the Soviet Union, the head of the executive branch. In the meantime, the Council of Ministers was dissolved and replaced by the Cabinet of Ministers of the Soviet Union. The new cabinet was headed by the Prime Minister. Gorbachev's election as President marked the third time in one year he was elected to an office equivalent to that of Soviet head of state. He was elected by the Congress of People's Deputies on all three occasions.