Russia's Federation Council, theupper house of parliament, Wednesday set March 26 as the date for the country's early presidential elections.

The motion was passed by 145 votes against one.

The winner in election will replace Boris Yeltsin, who resigned last Friday, six months before the scheduled term expires.The constitution stipulates an election must be held within three months following the president's resignation.

Earlier, Kremlin sources said Russian Acting President and Prime Minister Vladimir Putin takes the view that elections must be held strictly in accordance with the Russian Constitution on March 26, the last Sunday of the third month after early resignation of previous president.

In the Kremlin's opinion, this is the best date as all presidential candidates should enjoy equal conditions for running their election campaigns.

Alexander Veshnyakov, chairman of the Russian Central Electoral Commission (CEC) said that the country's presidential election campaign will kick off Thursday. (Xinhua)