The
General Secretary,
Mikhail Gorbachev, declared in his opening speech that political reform was the key issue. Gorbachev wanted to achieve the "
democratization of the life of the state and society", and wanted the
Soviet Union to "move along the path of the creation of a
socialist state under the
rule of law". The Conference called for elections for the governmental
soviets at all levels, with
secret ballots and multiple
candidacies, and it established the
Congress of People's Deputies of the Soviet Union. Although Gorbachev had to compromise on some of his several objectives because of conservative resistance, the conference was a significant victory for Gorbachev. ==External links==