This article deals with such aspects as the identification and definition of goals, means and methods by which leaders manage to enlist the support of the administration and the population. The article reveals the approaches to the definition of the concept of “leadership”, which take place both in foreign political science and in Russia. The political phenomenon of leadership, the process of its development in the system of state and municipal government are described. Psychological, social, political components of leadership, basic models of leadership are revealed.