He has a remarkable comeback

Yeltsin underwent a demotion to the position of deputy minister for construction before mounting the most amazing comeback in Soviet history. His standing as a supporter of democratic and economic reform among Soviet voters had endured his downfall. By utilizing this to his advantage, he won over more Soviet votes. In March 1989, he used the competitive elections Gorbachev instituted for the USSR Congress of People's Deputies (the new Soviet parliament) to his advantage and won a seat there with a resounding victory from the Moscow constituency. This achievement was merely the start of what would happen later in his political career.

In defiance of Gorbachev, the Russian S.F.S.R. parliament elected him president of the Russian republic on May 29, 1990. In his new position, Yeltsin made moves to grant the Russian republic more autonomy, openly backed the right of Soviet republics to more autonomy inside the Soviet Union, and endorsed a market-oriented economy and a multiparty political system.