1996 Mikhail Gorbachev presidential campaign 1996 Mikhail Gorbachev presidential campaign The Mikhail Gorbachev presidential campaign, 1996 was an electoral campaign effort by former President of the Soviet Union and General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union Mikhail Gorbachev in the 1996 Russian presidential election. Gorbachev's candidacy was beset by the obstacles of both minimal media coverage and a high level of distain towards him amongst the Russian populace. Gorbachev's candidacy ended in defeat during the first round of the election. The effort was the first, and only, electoral campaign of Gorbachev's post-Soviet political career. Gorbachev had led the Soviet Union from 1985
Khomeini's letter to Mikhail Gorbachev a lack of belief in spirituality the prime affliction of the human society in the East and the west alike." Khomeini warned Gorbachev "against falling into the arms of Western capitalism." After hearing the text of the letter, Gorbachev thanked Ruhollah Khomeini for the letter and said: "I'll send an answer to this letter as soon as possible" and added "we'll deliver [Khomeini's letter] to the Soviet clergymen". Referring to Khomeini's invitation to Islam, he said: "we are approving the law of religious freedom in the Soviet Union, I have claimed before that despite having different ideologies we can have