Yeltsin gets boost from CIS leaders,
new poll

May 17, 1996
Web posted at: 7 p.m. EDT (2300 GMT)

MOSCOW, Russia (CNN) -- There was good news for Russian President Boris Yeltsin on two fronts Friday -- leaders of 11 former Soviet republics voiced their support for him in the June 16 presidential election and at least one poll showed him gaining over Communist Party rival Gennady Zyuganov.

At a summit of the Commonwealth of Independent States, leaders declared they would respect the will of the Russian people but said they hoped voters would choose "a united, flourishing, democratic Russia."

Their support for Yeltsin reflected fears that a victory next month by Zyuganov, who favors restoring the former Soviet Union "on a voluntary basis," could spell an end to their sovereignty.

According to results of a CNN/Moscow poll released Friday, if the Russian presidential election were held today, Yeltsin would receive 27.7 percent of the vote, compared to 18.3 percent for Zyuganov.

Gain for Yeltsin

The poll numbers are a dramatic jump for Yeltsin, who was in a statistical dead-heat with Zyuganov in a poll taken by CNN last month.

The survey showed that liberal challenger Grigory Yavlinsky would receive 9.28 percent of the vote and radical nationalist Vladimir Zhirinovsky 4.3 percent.

If no candidate decisively wins the first round of elections on June 16, most analysts agree that the two candidates most likely to enter the second round of voting in July would be Yeltsin and Zyuganov.

In the event of a run-off, the polls showed that Yeltsin would win 43 percent of the vote and Zyuganov, 27 percent.

Other recent polls show Yeltsin taking a slimmer lead, while a poll by the Sociology of Parliamentarianism Institute had Zyuganov gaining over Yeltsin.

Differences between supporters of Yeltsin, Zyuganov

All polls indicate that Yeltsin's voters are better off and more likely to live in larger, urban centers, while Zyuganov's supporters are more likely to be older, less skilled and live in rural areas.

The poll sampled 1,058 people age 18 and older. The margin of error is plus or minus 3 to 4 percentage points.

The Russian stock exchange is putting its money on Yeltsin; traders there say their numbers are bound to be more accurate, since their financial well-being depends on democracy.

"If the Communists come to power, I think there can be any consequences, including the collapse of the market," said Dmitry Kulikov, a broker. "But I think that won't be, because I think the winner will be Yeltsin."

But Boris Yeltsin is leaving nothing to chance. He is meeting his constituents and is also promising to end the deeply unpopular system of military conscription by the year 2000, a sure-fire vote getter.

CNN Correspondent Eileen O'Connor contributed to this report.

Related stories:

• Western-style ad blitz kicks off Russian campaign season - May 16, 1996
• Liberal Yavlinsky cool over Yeltsin talk of unity - May 11, 1996

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