RUSSIA : Lebed Will Be in Runoff for Governor

Former security chief Alexander I. Lebed finished first in the race for governor of a Siberian region but failed to win enough votes to avoid a runoff against the incumbent. Lebed hopes that a win in the gubernatorial race in Krasnoyarsk will serve as a steppingstone to the presidency. With 98% of the votes counted, Lebed was leading Gov. Valery Zubov by 45% to 36%. A Communist candidate was a distant third. A runoff in which Lebed is favored will be held May 17. “I think [Lebed] will bring some fresh changes, and this is a kind of a rehearsal for the presidential elections in 2000,” said Vladimir Popov, an engineer. Asked if he was bothered that Lebed has no local roots--he comes from southern Russia--Popov laughed. “There are no locals in Siberia,” he said. “We all moved here, just at different times.”