List of heads of state of the Soviet Union
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[edit] Heads of State of the RSFSR (1917-1922) and the USSR (1922-1991)
[edit] Chairman of the Central Executive Committee of the All-Russian Congress of Soviets
- Note: The first Central Executive Committee of the All-Russian Congress of Soviets elected in June 1917 was not a governing body and its chairman was not the head of Russian state. This changed at the Second All-Russian Congress of Soviets during the October Revolution.
- Lev Kamenev (9 November 1917 - 21 November 1917)
- Yakov Sverdlov (21 November 1917 - 16 March 1919) (died in office)
- Mikhail Vladimirsky (16 March 1919 - 30 March 1919) (acting)
- Mikhail Kalinin (30 March 1919 - 19 July 1938)
- Note: On 30 December 1922 the Soviet Union was formed. It comprised Soviet Russia (RSFSR) and other Communist-controlled Soviet republics. Mikhail Kalinin retained his position as Chairman of the Central Executive Committee of the All-Russian Congress of Soviets and became Chairman of the newly formed Central Executive Committee of the USSR as well. Both positions were mostly ceremonial, increasingly so in later years.
[edit] Chairman of the Central Executive Committee of the USSR (jointly)
- Mikhail Kalinin (30 December 1922 - 12 January 1938) (office renamed)
- Grigory Petrovsky (30 December 1922 - 12 January 1938)
- Aleksandr Chervyakov (30 December 1922 - 16 June 1937)
- Nariman Narimanov (30 December 1922 - 19 March 1925)
- Gazanfar Musabekov (21 May 1925 - June 1937)
- Nedirbay Aytakov (21 May 1925 - 21 July 1937)
- Fayzulla Khodzhayev (21 May 1925 - 17 June 1937)
- Nusratulla Lutfullayev (18 March 1931 - 4 January 1934)
- Abdullo Rakhimbayev (4 January 1934 - September 1937)
[edit] Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR
- Mikhail Kalinin (17 January 1938 - 19 March 1946)
- Nikolay Shvernik (19 March 1946 - 6 March 1953)
- Kliment Voroshilov (15 March 1953 - 7 May 1960)
- Leonid Brezhnev (7 May 1960 - 15 July 1964)
- Anastas Mikoyan (15 July 1964 - 9 December 1965)
- Nikolai Podgorny (9 December 1965 - 16 June 1977)
- Leonid Brezhnev (16 June 1977 - 10 November 1982) (died in office)
- Vasily Kuznetsov (10 November 1982 - 16 June 1983) (acting)
- Yuri Andropov (16 June 1983 - 9 February 1984) (died in office)
- Vasily Kuznetsov 9 February 1984 - 11 April 1984) (acting)
- Konstantin Chernenko (11 April 1984 - 10 March 1985) (died in office)
- Vasily Kuznetsov (10 March 1985 - 27 July 1985) (acting)
- Andrei Gromyko (27 July 1985 - 1 October 1988)
- Mikhail Gorbachev (1 October 1988 - 25 May 1989) (office renamed)
[edit] Chairman of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR
- Note: On 15 March 1990 most constitutional powers were transferred to the newly created office of the President of the Soviet Union. Anatoly Lukyanov was elected Chairman of the Supreme Soviet to replace Mikhail Gorbachev. Although the Chairman's office retained its name, it was now that of a parliamentary speaker, not a head of state. Real executive powers were retained by Mikhail Gorbachev.
[edit] President of the Soviet Union
- Mikhail Gorbachev (15 March 1990 - 25 December 1991) (office abolished with the dissolution of the USSR)
- Gennady Yanayev (acting; in opposition) (19 August 1991 - 21 August 1991)
