Populist reformer Boris N. Yeltsin won the presidency of the largest Soviet republic Tuesday, overcoming opposition by Mikhail S. Gorbachev and declaring the start of ``Russia's social, economic and spiritual rebirth.'' Yeltsin's election, after three hard-fought ballots in the Congress of People's Deputies of the Russian Federation, poses a substantial challenge to Gorbachev and may spur more radical reforms across the country. Gorbachev, who arrives Wednesday in Washington for a summit, retains the two most powerful jobs in the country: president of the Soviet Union and General Secretary of the Soviet Communist Party. But as president of the largest of 15 Soviet republics, Yeltsin will have a highly visible platform from which to wage his campaign for more radical reforms. Yeltsin and other Soviet officials said they believe his election will help Gorbachev push more radical reforms. ``It may be a blessing in disguise,'' Foreign Ministry spokesman Gennady Gerasimov told reporters at the United Nations in New York. ``Gorbachev has his critics from both the left and the right, and possibly it is better to have the election of a critic from the left.'' Yeltsin said: ``At first, President Gorbachev will react very unhappily, but then he'll gradually get used to this inevitability.'' The strapping, white-haired Yeltsin told reporters that he would seek reconciliation with Gorbachev and avoid confrontation with him, so long as it did not hurt Russia's interests. Gorbachev had brought Yeltsin to Moscow to head the city's Communist Party, but the two men had a falling out in 1987 after Yeltsin publicly criticized the pace of Kremlin reforms. They have been at odds since then. After the vote result was announced in the Grand Kremlin Palace, Yeltsin strode to the podium to warm applause and pledged to ``spare nothing _ health or time _ to get out of this crisis and lead Russia to better times.'' His bass voice echoing through the hall, he called the day ``the beginning of the road to Russia's social, economic and spiritual rebirth, the way out of the crisis and toward the blossoming of Russia as a sovereign, independent government in the framework of our union.'' He left through the Kremlin gates later to the tumultuous cheers of a small crowd of well-wishers chanting ``Victory! Victory!'' One man yelled, ``Thank you, thank you for the future!'' Gorbachev strongly opposed Yeltsin's election. He told the Russian Congress last week that Yeltsin's platform of moving political and economic power from central to local authorities would lead to a ``breakup of the union.'' The Russian Federation stretches from the Baltic Sea in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the East. It is home to half the country's 285 million people and includes Moscow, the Soviet capital. As president of the Russian Congress, a newly created body that holds the Russian Federation's highest government authority, Yeltsin acts as chief executive of the republic and took office immediately. As the first president of a newly reorganized legislature, he will play a major role in shaping his powers and duties, which as yet are unclear. After three votes in the 1,060-member Russian Congress, Yeltsin won 535 votes, four more than the majority needed. Russian Premier Alexander Vlasov received 467 votes. Valentin Tsoy, a little-known businessman from the Soviet Far East, received 11 votes. Lawmakers said Tuesday they believed Yeltsin gained the last few votes he needed by offering to form a coalition government with members of the conservative Communist Party bloc and other groups. Yeltsin said he believed he gained several votes because of a last-minute push by Gorbachev to block his election. Gorbachev reportedly urged delegates at a meeting Monday night not to vote for Yeltsin. Russian Deputy Alexander Liubimov, a well-known TV commentator, said Yeltsin's election would force Gorbachev to start dealing with another strong leader instead of ``shadows'' willing to defer to him. ``It will be a lesson for him. Maybe a hard one,'' Liubimov said. Vitaly Churkin, a spokesman for Foreign Minister Eduard A. Shevardnadze, said on NBC that Yeltsin's election ``might actually help Gorbachev because Gorbachev is for radical reform, and he needs more popular support for that.'' Some also said Yeltsin may have benefited from the adverse reaction to the Kremlin's proposed program for making the crippled Soviet economy a partial market economy. The reform program, which would triple the price of bread on July 1 and double the cost of other foodstuffs starting Jan. 1, caused panic buying that prompted Moscow city authorities to bar sales to non-residents of the capital Monday. The national legislature postponed a decision on the reform plan Tuesday, raising the possibility of compromise with Yeltsin and others demanding more radical measures. It also rejected a motion for a no-confidence vote in Premier Nikolai I. Ryzhkov, who presented the reforms last week. Yeltsin has proposed a more rapid transition to a market-based economy that would grant more freedom to enterprises and entrepreneurs.
Populist reformer Boris Yeltsin won the presidency of the largest Soviet republic Tuesday, overcoming opposition by Mikhail Gorbachev and declaring the start of "Russia's social, economic, and spiritual rebirth. " Lawmakers said they believed Yeltsin gained the last few votes he needed by offering to form a coalition government with the Communist Party bloc and other groups. Yeltsin said he believed he gained several voters because of a last-minute push by Gorbachev to block his election. Gorbachev reportedly urged delegates at a meeting Monday night not to vote for Yeltsin. The Associated Press contributed to this report.