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The method of usage of the funds received from the major donor's of the Soviet Communist Party is analyzed. This was done using available records from 1938-1965 and also gave a better understanding of the relation between the central and regional party organizations.

The final draft of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union's (CPSU) party program was completed on Aug. 5, 1991. The move to create a new program was initiated by Russian Pres. Gorbachev. The draft commission consisted of 134 individuals. The process leading to the draft was filled with debates and disputes within the party. Significant changes were made regarding party principles, goals and its role in a renewed society. The draft party program was the final statement of the CPSU which represented the end of the Marxist-Leninist ideology., The events surrounding the August 1991 coup have tended to overshadow the ideological and political significance of the draft party programme of July 1991. It was published in Pravda on [...]

On the basis of personal interviews with 116 members of the political elite of the USSR in its terminal period, conclusions are drawn about influence on political power and reasons for the breakdown of the political system. Unlike democratic transitions grounded on negotiation, the collapse of the USSR was a consequence of a fragmented and highly divided political elite lacking in political and moral cohesion. The driving forces of political change came from within the Party leadership which believed the system to be fundamentally flawed whereas other groups in the ruling elite considered it to be essentially sound. In the absence of a firm political base for radical reform, foreign Western leaders are shown to have been sought as allies for change. In turn their perceived influence exacerbated elite dissension.

Mikhail Gorbachev's role in promoting perestroika in Russia proved extremely paradoxical in that the reforms he undertook were aimed at strengthening the Communist Party but ended up causing the downfall of it. Attempts to democratize the base of the party, which had been rejected as inconceivable by Western analysts, had the contrary effect of unleashing revolutionary forces which overwhelmed the divided and discredited Communist Party.

The results of the Mar 1990 elections to the Yaroslavl Regional Soviet revealed that the regional Communist Party leadership has adapted to the rules of competitive politics because they worked with the regional elites to halt reformist pressure from above and below. Leaders of the regional Communist Party won because they mobilized voters from rural areas and placed members of regional elites in safe seats. District officials were involved in gerrymandering, malapportionment, numerical fraud and single-candidate districting in an effort to help members of local elites and high officials.

The Russian Communist party was officially re-established as the Communist Party of the Russian Federation (CPRF) at the Second Emergency Congress on the Restoration and Reunification of the Communist Party, in between Feb 13, 1993 to Feb 14, 1993. About 527,000 people joined, bringing total membership to 500,000, compared to 16 million in the 80s. The majority of members under communist rules were dissenters. A number of articles are presented higlighting the aims and objectives of the CPRF. There is also an interview with the leader of the Co-Pres of the League of Green Parties, Sergei Fonichov.

Soviet Communist Party traditionalists tried to inspire a new cult of Lenin among the Soviet people between Jan and Aug 1991 as a means of opposing the efforts of perestroika reformers to introduce democracy and end the Party's monopoly on power. Between 1985 and 1990 the reformers invoked Lenin's name and justified perestroika as a revival of long-ignored Leninist principles. However, a Jan 1991 article in the newspaper 'Pravda' presaged an attempt by anti-perestroika conservatives to use Leninist sentiment to defend the Party, but the failure of the Aug 1991 putsch ended the restoration of Lenin's cult.

The failed coup d'etat in the Soviet Union last August was more than just a potential victory for democracy. The Communist Party was eliminated to a great extent because the Soviets were politically and psychologically ready to eliminate the Stalinist mentality which had dominated their country.

The reluctance of the Communist Party to concede power to the Soviets has restrained what could be radical changes in Soviet politics and economy. Economic reforms which pay lip service to worker autonomy and participation in management are tools to reinforce their hold on power. Further, Party agencies continue to wield real power, hence slowing down democratization. What is needed is true political reform which shall affirm the principles of democracy and rule of law, and radical economic reform that shall establish and encourage property ownership.

The Soviet Union is undergoing a series of political crises which are having conflicting effects on the advancement of democratic reforms. Mikhail Gorbachev has the difficult challenge of appeasing communist hardliners and dealing with demands for autonomy.

The Russian Communist party has been regrouping and revitalizing its forces. Communist conferences have been held in Moscow, Kazan, Astrakhan, Krsnoyarsk and outlying areas. The leaders hope to attract 15% to 20% of the former members to rejoin the party. Moreover, leaders insist that the new Russian Communist Party is different because it favors the establishment of a planned market economy, the reimposition of price control mechanisms, land ownership laws and free market policies.