The president is the chair of the Federal State Council and the supreme commander-in-chief of the Russian Armed Forces.

The modern incarnation of the office emerged from the president of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic (RSFSR).

He played a crucial role in the dissolution of the Soviet Union which saw the transformation of the RSFSR into the Russian Federation.

Following a series of scandals and doubts about his leadership, violence erupted across Moscow in the 1993 Russian constitutional crisis.

The president of the RDFR would have been the head of state, elected for a one-year term by a majority vote in parliament involving the deputies of both chambers.

[7] Due to the dissolution of the assembly by the Bolsheviks and establishment of their one-party dictatorship, no person was ever elected to this office.

The Yeltsin era was marked by widespread corruption, economic collapse, and enormous political and social problems.

[11] At the same time, his conduct in office has been questioned by domestic dissenters, as well as foreign governments and human rights organizations, for his handling of internal conflicts in Chechnya and Dagestan, his record on internal human rights and freedoms, his relations with former Soviet republics, and his relations with the so-called oligarchs: Russian businessmen with a high degree of power and influence within both the Russian government and economy.

Formerly Vladimir Putin's chief of staff, he was also the chairman of Gazprom's board of directors, a post he had held, for the second time, since 2000.

[13] As technocrat and political appointee, Medvedev – Putin's former chief of staff and one-time rival to Sergey Ivanov – had never held elective office before 2009.

Each faction in the State Duma, the lower house of the Russian parliament has the right to nominate a candidate for the presidential elections.

The minimum number of signatures for a presidential candidate fielded by a political party with no parliamentary representation is 100,000, down from 2 million before amendments to the law.

If the president is chosen in an early election, they are scheduled to take the oath thirty days after the announcement of the results.

Before executing the powers of the office, a president is constitutionally required to take the presidential oath:[26]I swear in exercising the powers of the President of the Russian Federation to respect and safeguard the rights and freedoms of man and citizen, to observe and protect the Constitution of the Russian Federation, to protect the sovereignty and independence, security and integrity of the State, to faithfully serve the people.Vacancies in the office of president may arise under several possible circumstances: death, resignation and removal from office.

At the inauguration of Vladimir Putin, the emblem was placed on a red pillow, positioned on the left side of the podium.

Nonetheless, the special copy of the Constitution still exists and serves for inauguration purposes only without being officially presented as a symbol of the Russian Presidency.

The president submits to the State Duma, the lower house of parliament, nominations for appointment to the office of the chairperson of the Central Bank, and likewise submits to the State Duma any proposal to relieve the chairperson of the Central Bank of their duties.

Under the Constitution, the president is not empowered to determine the full range of short-, middle-, and long-term objectives and targets of domestic policy, but only its basic guidelines.

Each year the president is required to make an Address to the Federal Assembly regarding the situation in the country and the internal and foreign policy of the state.

The president appoints and recalls diplomatic representatives of Russia to foreign states and international organizations.

The president of Russia bears ultimate authority over the Russian Armed Forces as "Supreme Commander-in-Chief", a role established by Article 87 of the Constitution.

In this capacity, the president issues military directives, makes defence policy and appoints the High Command of the Armed Forces.

[30][31][32][33] Furthermore, several articles of the Defence Statute enable the president to order a general or partial mobilization of the military, announce martial law, oversee the war industry and make regulations.

State Awards of the Russian Federation are the highest form of official recognition given to individuals for service to the nation in the fields of defense, state-building, economics, science, culture, art, education, health care, public safety, rights advocacy and charity.

A Commission for State Honors, which works on a voluntary basis, helps the president to objectively assess potential recipients.

In 2012, commenting on stepping down from the post of United Russia party leader, Vladimir Putin said "The constitution doesn't forbid the president to be a member of any party, but in the spirit of how our political life has evolved, a president is first and foremost a consolidating figure for all the political forces of the country, for all citizens".

[40] National transport services for the Russian president and the presidential state car are provided by the Special Purpose Garage (SPG).

According to the chief of the Kremlin Property Agency construction of a helicopter pad for the president cost 200 million rubles (about $6.4 mln).

This law establishes the legal, social and other guarantees of the Russian Federation's president, stops the execution of its powers in connection with the expiration of their term of office or in advance in the event of their resignation or permanent incapacity for health reasons to exercise the powers belonging to them and their family: Beginning in 1999, all living former presidents were granted a pension, an office, and a staff.