Boris Yeltsin was elected president of the Russian Federation by winning up to 60 percent of the vote . 90 percent in his hometown of Sverdlovsk, in the Ural Mountains. The victory was certain to accelerate reforms across the Soviet Union and it cleared the way for him to travel to Washington next week , at the invitation of Congress , in a demonstration of independence from Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev . The White House applauded his visit as a " good sign " for democracy and said he would visit here next Thursday . However , democracy is still in its infancy in Russia . Election officials say they are laboriously counting paper ballots cast at each of 98,000 polling stations .
Boris Yeltsin was elected president of the Russian Federation by winning up to 60 percent of the vote . The victory was certain to accelerate reforms across the Soviet Union and it cleared the way for him to travel to Washington next week , at the invitation of Congress , in a demonstration of independence from Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev . The White House applauded his visit as a " good sign " for democracy and said he would visit here next Thursday . However , democracy is still in its infancy in Russia . Election officials say they are laboriously counting paper ballots cast at each of 98,000 polling stations .