Mircea Snegur

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Mircea Ion Snegur (b. January 17, 1940 - Trifăneşti, Soroca County ) was the first President of Moldova. In the Soviet era, he was often known in English as Mircha Ivanovich Snegur, a transliteration from the Russian Мирча Иванович Снегур.

A former Communist Party official, Snegur endorsed independence for Moldova and actively sought Western recognition. Moldova declared its independence from the Soviet Union in August 1991. However, Snegur's opposition to immediate reunification with Romania led to a split with the Moldovan Popular Front in October 1991 and to his decision to run as an independent candidate in a December 1991 presidential election. Running unopposed, he won after the Popular Front's efforts to organize a voter boycott failed.

In the presidential elections of 1996, Parliamentary speaker Petru Lucinschi surprised the nation with an upset victory over Snegur in a second round of balloting.

[edit] Education

Chişinău Institute of Agriculture

[edit] Career

Member of the Communist Party 1964–1990

1967–1971 - worked as agronomist, manager of state and collective farms
1971–1978 - with the Ministry of Agriculture
1978–1981 - Director General of the Selektsiya Research Production Association, Kishinev
1981–1985 - Secretary of the Communist Party committee of Yedinetskiy district
1985–1989 - Secretary in the Central Committee of the CP of Moldavia
1989–1990 - Chairman of the Presidium of Supreme Soviet of Moldavia
1990 (April-September) - Chairman of the Supreme Soviet of Moldavia
1990–1996 - President of independent Moldova

Preceded by formation of republic	President of the Republic of Moldova 1991–1996	Succeeded by Petru Lucinschi

Leaders of Moldova since 1940
Moldavian SSR, First Secretaries: Pyotr Borodin \| Nikita Salogor (acting) \| Nikolay Koval \| Leonid Brezhnev \| Dmitry Gladky \| Zinovy Serdyuk \| Ivan Bodyul \| Semyon Grossu \| Petru Lucinschi \| Grigory Yeremy
Moldova, Presidents: Mircea Snegur \| Petru Lucinschi \| Vladimir Voronin