List of leaders of the Soviet Union
Following Joseph Stalin's consolidation of power in the 1920s, the post of the General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party became synonymous with leader of the Soviet Union, because the post controlled both the Communist Party and the Soviet Government, both indirectly, via Party membership, and via the tradition of a single person holding two highest posts: in the Party and in the government. The post of the General Secretary was abolished in 1952 under Stalin and later re-established by Nikita Khrushchev under the name of First Secretary. In 1966, Leonid Brezhnev reverted the office title to its former name. Being the head of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU), the office of the General Secretary was the highest in the Soviet Union until 1990. The post of General Secretary lacked clear guidelines of succession, so after the death or removal of a Soviet leader the successor usually needed the support of the Politburo, the Central Committee, or another government or party apparatus to both take and stay in power. The President of the Soviet Union, an office created in March 1990, replaced the General Secretary as the highest Soviet political office.
Communist Party of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic
The first session of the founding congress of the Communist Party of the RSFSR opened in Moscow on 19 June 1990. 2,768 delegates attended the congress. There were three key contenders for the post of First Secretary, Valentin Kuptsov, Ivan Polozkov and Oleg Lobov (Second Secretary of the Communist Party of Armenia). Kuptsov, the candidate supported by Gorbachev and the all-Union party leadership, suffered a heavy defeat. He received a mere 343 votes in favour whilst 2,278 delegates voted against him. Polozkov obtained 1,017 votes in favour and 1,604 against him, whilst Lobov got 848 votes in favour and 1,773 votes against him. A run-off was held between Polozkov and Lobov. Polozkov was elected with 1,396 against 1,066 for Lobov. The first session of the founding congress concluded on 23 June 1990.