Supported by the Sheriff conglomerate,[3] he defeated incumbent President Yevgeny Shevchuk in the 2016 presidential elections, receiving 62% of the vote.[4] He was inaugurated on 27 December at the Nadezhda Aronetskaya State Drama Theatre.[5] On 4 January 2017, he received newly-elected Moldovan President Igor Dodon in Bendery, who was the second Moldovan leader to visit the PMR in several years.[6] In September 2018, his first major state visit outside of the PMR was to Sukhumi for Abkhazia's Independence Day celebration.[7][8] In January 2019, he attended the opening of the PMR representative offices in Moscow, replacing the Cooperation Center "Pridnestrovie".[9] On 29 May, he announced the creation of an international lawsuit against Moldova in which the PMR asks for compensation for "the aggression against the people of Transnistria".[10] In August, he attended a ceremony at the base of the Operational Group of Russian Forces with Russian Defence Minister Sergey Shoigu dedicated the 75th anniversary of the Liberation of Moldova in the Jassy–Kishinev Offensive.[11][12][13][14] In late October, he met with President Dodon at his presidential residence in Holercani ahead of the Bavaria Conference, scheduled for 4–5 November.[15][16]