page_title: 1996 Russian presidential election
section_title: Boris Yeltsin
hierarchical_section_title: 1996 Russian presidential election / Campaigning / Boris Yeltsin
caption_attribution_description: English: ATEPTSEVO, NARO-FOMINSKII DISTRICT, MOSCOW REGION. President of the Russian Federation Boris Yeltsin\'s pre-electoral trip to the Moscow region.Русский: АТЕПЦЕВО, НАРО-ФОМИНСКИЙ РАЙОН, МОСКОВСКАЯ ОБЛАСТЬ. Предвыборная поездка Президента РФ Бориса Ельцина по Подмосковью.
context_page_description: The 1996 Russian presidential election took place in Russia on 16 June 1996, with a second round on 3 July. It resulted in a victory for the incumbent President Boris Yeltsin, who ran as an independent. Yeltsin defeated Communist challenger Gennady Zyuganov in the run-off, receiving 54.4% of the vote. His inauguration ceremony took place on 9 August.
  This election was the first to take place in post-Soviet Russia.
context_section_description: Incumbent Boris Yeltsin ran for reelection as an independent candidate.
  While his prospects of winning were originally faltering, Yeltsin was able to resuscitate his image and pull off a successful campaign.
  Yeltsin's original strategy, devised by Oleg Soskovets, involved him pivoting towards the nationalist wing of Russia's politics in order to directly compete for votes with Zyuganov and Zhirinovsky. However, this strategy was ultimately abandoned in favor of one devised by reformists. Yeltsin's new campaign strategy was, essentially, to convince voters that they had to choose him as the lesser of two evils. This strategy sought to recast Yeltsin as an individual single-handedly fighting to stave off communist control. The campaign framed a narrative that portrayed Yeltsin as Russia's best hope for stability. The campaign worked to shift the narrative of the election into a referendum on whether voters wanted to return to their communist past (with Zyuganov), or continue with reforms (with Yeltsin).
  Yeltsin was able to leverage the power of his office. This included using government funds to finance campaign promises, utilizing state media organizations, and currying favoritism amongst financial and media oligarchs.
  Two days after the conclusion of the first round, Yeltsin appointed former general Alexander Lebed , who had finished third with 14.7% of vote, to the post of Secretary of Security Council of the Russian Federation and the President's National Security Advisor. Lebed in turn endorsed Yeltsin in the runoff election. Meanwhile, Yeltsin suffered from a serious heart attack and disappeared from public view. His condition was kept secret through 3 July second round election. During this period of time, Yeltsin's campaign team created a "virtual Yeltsin" shown in the media through staged interviews that never happened and pre-recorded radio addresses.
caption: Yeltsin campaigning in the Moscow-region on 7 May 1996
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