Elections and People's Democracy in the USSR, 1985

The Left Chapter
1 day ago
4 min read

Voting in Leningrad, 1984

From Socialism: Theory and Practice, 1985, a look at elections and the exercise of people's democracy in the USSR.

ELECTIONS IN THE USSR: GENERAL FACTS

1) The Soviets of People's Deputies, i.e., the USSR Supreme Soviet, Supreme Soviets of Union and autonomous republics and local Soviets constitute an integral system of bodies of state authority in the country. Deputies to all Soviets are elected on the basis of universal, equal and direct suffrage by secret ballot. The Supreme Soviet of the USSR and Supreme Soviets of Union and autonomous republics are elected for a term of five years. local Soviets. for two and a half years.

2) Article 96 of the Constitution of the USSR grants all citizens of the USSR who have reached the age of 18 the right to vote and to be elected, with the exception of persons who have been certified insane. either legally or by a medical commission, citizens of other countries and stateless persons.

Soviet laws do not lay down any limitations for nominating candidates in connection with their social or property status, past activities, religious convictions, nature of their occupation, and sex. Only age matters. To be eligible for election to local Soviets (from rural to regional) and republican Supreme Soviets a citizen must have reached the age of 18, while to the USSR Supreme Soviet, 21.

3) The Supreme Soviet of the USSR, the highest body of state authority of the Soviet Union. consists of two chambers: the Soviet of the Union and the Soviet of Nationalities, both having an equal number of deputies. The Soviet of the Union is elected by constituencies with equal population numbers. The Soviet of Nationalities is elected on the basis of the established representation: 32 deputies from each Union republic, 11 deputies from each autonomous republic, 5 deputies from each autonomous region and one deputy from each autonomous area.

4) In 1984, 750 deputies were elected to each chamber of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR, including 527 workers (35.2 per cent of their total number), 242 collective farmers (16.1 per cent). Women comprise 32.8 per cent of all deputies. 331 deputies (22 per cent) are under 30. Some 52.6 per cent of all deputies have higher education.

5) Some 2.3 million Soviet citizens were elected to local Soviets of People's Deputies. of which there are over 51,060 in the country. Workers account for 44.3 per cent of the deputies there; collective farmers, 24.9 per cent; young people under 30, about 33 per cent; deputies with higher and secondary education, 75 per cent There are over a million women deputies.

6) The right to nominate candidates is granted to public organizations and general meetings of work collectives at plants, factories, institutions and organizations, and collective and state farms. Incidentally, both public organizations and individual citizens can propose candidates.

7) The Soviets give all classes and social groups in the country the opportunity to have a hand in running the affairs of state. This is graphically shown by the composition of the newly elected republican and local bodies of state authority in the USSR. The overwhelming majority of all deputies are workers and collective farmers, the remainder being specialists in various sectors of the national economy. teachers, doctors, scientists, workers of state and public organizations.

8) Soviets are renewed almost by half at each election. Over 20 million people have been elected deputies over the past 20 years.

9) The expenses involved in holding elections and organizing candidates meetings with their electorate and their speeches over the radio and TV are fully borne by the state.

PARTY AND STATE DEMOCRACY IN THE USSR

Social Composition of the CPSU

44.1 per cent–workers

12.4 per cent–collective farmers

43.5 per cent–scientists, writers. artists, educators, members of the medical profession, executives, servicemen

Nearly one in every ten adult citizens of the USSR is a CPSU member
The CPSU has in its membership people of 100 nationalities and ethnic groups living in the USSR.
The Soviets–bodies of state authority in the USSR–have over two million deputies, two-thirds of them workers and farmers
Thirty-one million Soviet citizens voluntarily assist the Soviets' everyday activities in one form or another
One in every four Soviet citizens over 1 8 participates in running the affairs of state

PEOPLE’S CONTROL

A system of people’s control bodies functions in the USSR which cannot be found in any capitalist country. People’s control is an important form of working people’s participation in managing the affairs of state and society.

There are bodies of people’s control–groups and posts–at practically every enterprise, collective farm, institution and organization. These truly democratic bodies of people’s government have very broad powers. They exercise public control over the fulfilment of state plans and assignments, reveal and make public facts of violation of Soviet law and of labour and financial discipline, and fight mismanagement and the squandering of state funds and resources, red tape and bureaucracy.

Over 10 million activists are elected to people's control bodies which combine state control with public control. Most of them work gratis.

People's controllers include:

4.9 million workers

1.4 million collective farmers

3.6 million office employees and specialists

37.5 thousand students and trainees

53 thousand pensioners and housewives

Among these are:

3.9 million CPSU members and candidate members

1.6 million YCLers

4.2 million women