Boris Nikolayevich Yeltsin, a pivotal figure in Russia's transition to democracy, died peacefully at his home near Moscow on April 23, 2007 at the age of 76. Born on February 1, 1931, in the village of Butka, in the Ural mountains, he chose a military career, serving in the Soviet Air Force. He joined the Communist Party in 1961, and rose swiftly through the ranks to become first the party's leader in the Sverdlovsk region, then a full Politburo member and Secretary of the Communist Party of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic. In June of 1991, he was elected the first President of the Russian Federation, defying the Communist hardliners in Moscow and leading to the breakup of the Soviet Union. He oversaw constitutional, economic and social reforms, remaining the chief executive until December 1999. He will be remembered for the courage which allowed him to oppose a system he believed was failing his country and which was not delivering economic security to its people. He leaves behind a legacy of transition to democracy, and a Russia where basic human rights, freedom of speech and access to free and fair elections are now expected.