On Wednesday Georgy Poltavchenko took over the position from the previous head, Valentina Matvienko, who held her position for more than eight years. Earlier Poltavchenko was nominated by President Dmitry Medvedev and approved by the Legislative Assembly.

      Poltavchenko won with the support of thirty-seven deputies voted for Poltavchenko. Five deputies abstained and no deputies voted against him.

      The new governor is quite familiar with life in St. Petersburg, as he started his career in aviatiobn industry there. He also worked with the country’s prime minister, Vladimir Putin, in the city’s KGB headquarters.

      The new governor has pledged to resolve all the city's major problems, including poor street-cleaning in the winter, an inconvenient subway system and troublesome traffic, as well as numerous social issues. How exactly the problems will be dealt with has yet to be defined.  

      An official inauguration ceremony of the newly approved governor will be held at the Mariinsky Palace on Wednesday.

      The city's previous governor, Valentina Matvienko, has stepped down after she was offered the position of the Federation Council speaker.

Sources: Russia Today ITAR-TASS