Poll shows Yeltsin far ahead of rival
June 28, 1996
Web posted at: 1:00 p.m. EDT (1700 GMT)MOSCOW (CNN) -- With less than a week to go before the runoff election, Russian President Boris Yeltsin has a two-to- one lead over his Communist rival for the presidency, Gennady Zyuganov, according to a CNN-Moscow Times poll released Friday.
While the poll showed Yeltsin with what appeared to be a commanding lead, public opinion polls in Russia are often unreliable because respondents are often reluctant to share their political views with pollsters.
The poll of 1,001 potential voters showed Yeltsin with 50 percent of the vote, 24.8 percent for Zyuganov and another quarter of the electorate saying they would not vote or were undecided.
The poll, conducted by the Institute for Comparative Social Research, has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.5 percentage points.
In Russia, voters are allowed to vote for "none of the above," and 4.9 percent of those polled said they would vote that way. Another 7 percent said they would not vote, while 13.3 percent said they were unsure who they would vote for.
In the first round of voting on June 16, Yeltsin won 35 percent of the vote compared with 32 percent for Zyuganov. The runoff election for president will be held Wednesday.
Yeltsin gets boost from former rival
Yeltsin received support from an unexpected quarter Friday. Although he did not specifically back Yeltsin, Ultra- nationalist Vladimir Zhirinovsky -- a candidate in the first round of elections -- urged his supporters not to vote for the Communist candidate.
"I ask my voters to participate in the July 3 vote but not to vote for Gennady Zyuganov," Zhirinovsky said during a news conference.
Zhirinovsky came in fifth place in the June 16 presidential election with 5.7 percent of the vote. Yeltsin already has the backing of retired Gen. Alexander Lebed who received 14.5 percent of the vote and is talking with liberal economist Grigory Yavlinsky who received 7.3 percent of the vote.
Yeltsin cuts back schedule
A day after Yeltsin canceled a campaign trip, his aides say he will not be making any public appearances until Sunday. He also did not attend a scheduled meeting Friday with agricultural workers. Aides say Yeltsin is having voice problems but is otherwise in good health.
Yeltsin, 65, has a history of heart trouble and numerous bouts with alcohol during his presidency. In recent months he has campaigned with renewed vigor, maintaining a grueling schedule.
Moscow Bureau Chief Eileen O'Connor, The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.
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