Vlaimir Vladimirovich Putin (Russian: Влади́мир Влади́мирович Пу́тин (help·info) Russian pronunciation: [vlɐˈdʲimʲɪr vlɐˈdʲimʲɪrəvʲɪt͡ɕ ˈputʲɪn]) (born October 7, 1952, in Leningrad, U.S.S.R., now Saint Petersburg, Russia) is a Russian politician who was the 2nd President of the Russian Federation from 2000 to 2008 and is the current Prime Minister of Russia as well as the chairman of United Russia. He became acting President on December 31, 1999, succeeding Boris Yeltsin, and then won the 2000 presidential election. In 2004, he was re-elected for a second term lasting until May 7, 2008.