Communists of Russia explained

Communists of Russia
Leader1 Title:Chairman of Central Committee
Leader1 Name:Sergey Malinkovich
Leader2 Title:First Deputy Chairman
Leader2 Name:Ruslan Khugayev
Founder:Maxim Suraykin
Headquarters:47th Building, Leningradsky Avenue, Moscow, Russia. 125167
International:IMCWP (observer)
Country:Russia
Native Name:Коммунисты России
Kommunisty Rossii
Abbreviation:CPCR (English)
KPKR (Russian)
Founded: (as movement)[1]
(as party)[2]
Newspaper:Communists of Russia
Youth Wing:All-Russian Leninist Young Communist League
Merger:NSKM RF
Communists of Petersburg
Communists of Far East
Predecessor:All-Russian Communist Party of the Future
Membership Year:2018
Membership:50,000[3]
Position:Far-left
Slogan:"Workers of the world, unite!"
(Russian: "Proletarii vsekh stran, soyedinyaytes'!")
Seats1 Title:Seats in the State Duma
Seats2 Title:Seats in the Federation Council
Seats3 Title:Governors
Seats4 Title:Seats in the Regional Parliaments
Colours: Red

The Communist Party "Communists of Russia" (CPCR; Russian: Коммунистическая партия «Коммунисты России»; КПКР; Kommunisticheskaya partiya «Kommunisty Rossii», KPKR) or simply Communists of Russia (CR; Russian: Коммунисты России; КР; Kommunisty Rossii, KR) is an anti-revisionist Marxist–Leninist communist party in Russia. Communists of Russia was founded in May 2009 as a public non-commercial organisation, and officially registered as a political party in April 2012.[1] [2]

The party has regional organisations in 69 regions and operates in 70 regions of Russia and has official affiliation with two inter-regional public associations: the Communists of St. Petersburg and Leningrad Region and the Communists of the Far East. The party's main rival on the left of Russia's political spectrum is the Communist Party of the Russian Federation (CPRF), which sees itself as the successor to the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU).[4] The KR considers itself an alternative to the CPRF, which it believes is no longer a Marxist party and will not be able to return to power as long as Gennady Zyuganov is First Secretary.[5] However, the party has been widely described as a spoiler party, including by the CPRF.[6] [7] [8] [9] [10]

On March 18, 2022, an extraordinary party congress was held, at which a new chairman of the Central Committee of the party, Sergey Malinkovich, was elected.[11] [12] On December 28, 2023, he was nominated by an overwhelming majority as the party candidate for president of Russia in the 2024 presidential election.[13] [14] [15] Malinkovich promised a program like Stalin's ten blows, against United States capitalism and imperialism, and victory in Russia's war against Ukraine.[16]

Platform

For the 2016 Russian legislative election, the Communists of Russia released an electoral platform titled "Ten Stalinist Strikes on Capitalism", which called for broad nationalization, the return of the death penalty for certain crimes, medical reform, and a constitutional ban on raising the retirement age.[7]

Election results

Presidential elections

ElectionCandidateFirst roundSecond roundResult
Votes%Votes%
2018499,342bgcolor=lightgrey colspan=2Lost
2024Not admitted to the elections[17]

On December 28, 2023, Sergey Malinkovich was nominated by an overwhelming majority as the party candidate for President of Russia in the March 15-17, 2024 presidential election.[13] [14] [15] Malinkovich promised a program like Stalin's ten blows, against United States capitalism and imperialism, and victory in Russia's war against Ukraine.[16]

Legislative elections

ElectionParty leaderPerformanceRankGovernment
Votes%± ppSeats+/–
2016Maxim Suraykin1,192,595NewNew5th
2021715,685 1.00 0 8th

Regional elections

At the Russian regional elections in 2012, the party got 2 to 3.5 percent of the vote and two seats.

Khakassia

In the 2018 Khakassia Supreme Council election, the Communists of Russia won 8.01% of the vote, and won 2 of the 50 seats on the Supreme Council.[18]

Nenets Autonomous Okrug

In the, the Communists of Russia won 1 of the 19 seats on the Assembly of Deputies.[19]

Rostov Oblast

In the 2018 Rostov Oblast Legislative Assembly election, the Communists of Russia won 5% of the vote, and won 1 of the 60 seats on the .[20]

Tula Oblast

In the, the Communists of Russia won 5.67% of the vote, and won 1 of the 36 seats on the Tula Oblast Duma.[21]

Ulyanovsk Oblast

In the, the Communists of Russia won 5.83% of the vote, and won 1 of the 36 seats on the Legislative Assembly.[22]

Yaroslavl Oblast

In the 2018 Yaroslavl Oblast Duma election, the Communists of Russia won over 5% of the vote, winning 1 of the 50 seats on the Yaroslavl Oblast Duma.[23]

Criticism

The Communists of Russia has been criticized by a number of left-wing political groups and parties in Russia, as well as former members of the party, which have denounced the party as a spoiler and a front for the Russian government. In June 2015, the Communist Party of the Russian Federation filed a lawsuit with the Moscow Arbitration Court against the Communists of Russia party to stop using the name, citing their similarity. On 11 July 2016, the court dismissed this claim. In April 2016, the Communist Party of the Russian Federation also accused the Communists of Russia's electoral platform, titled "Ten Stalinist Strikes on Capitalism", of copying their own, titled "Zyuganov's Ten Theses on Bringing the Country Out of the Crisis".

The Russian United Labour Front, a left-wing organization in Russia, condemns the Communists of Russia as a front for government officials to splinter the left-wing vote. In an article they published, they highlight that the Communists of Russia was able to get official recognition immediately, whereas their organization had their recognition application refused seven times, and also note how the Communists of Russia were able to enter the Supreme Council of the Republic of Khakassia without collecting the signatures required for other parties who wish to compete in regional elections. They also accuse the party of running businessmen closely associated with the ruling United Russia party as candidates, gaining a disproportionate media spotlight, and needlessly attacking the Communist Party of the Russian Federation. The Russian United Labour Front also has exposed advertisements by the Communists of Russia which promise to pay people 300 Rubles for attending their rallies, and sent one writer to do just that.

Former deputy chairman of the Communists of Russia, Konstantin Zhukov, claimed that party leader Maxim Suraykin has warped the party from a genuine left-wing party into a tool of the government to cripple the Communist Party of the Russian Federation. According to Zhukov, Suraykin has removed the Communists of Russia's collective decision making structure, and ignored other senior party members to further turn the party into his own. Zhukov claimed that 10 of the 15 candidates the party put forth to compete in the 2016 Russian legislative election in Moscow were put forth by Andrey Vorobyov, the governor of Moscow Oblast and member of the ruling United Russia party, whereas just 2 were members of the Communists of Russia. For the 2019 Moscow City Duma election, Zhukov accused 26 of the party's 32 candidates of being put forth by Sergey Sobyanin, the Mayor of Moscow and United Russia member.

The news website Meduza noted that the Communists of Russia was running two candidates with virtually identical names to two Communist Party candidates in the 2021 Russian legislative election in Moscow.[10]

External links

Notes and References

  1. News: Новые коммунисты готовы конкурировать со старыми. Коммерсантъ. 17 September 2021.
  2. Web site: Коммунисты России" решили создать новую партию. 20 September 2016.
  3. Web site: КОММУНИСТЫ РОССИИ - ОФИЦИАЛЬНЫЙ САЙТ / О партии / КРАТКАЯ СПРАВКА. 17 September 2021. komros.org.
  4. American University (Washington, D.C.) and Moskovskiĭ gosudarstvennyĭ universitet im. M. V. Lomonosova. Demokratizatsiya: The Journal of Post-Soviet Democratization. Volume 4. Washington, D.C. Quality Press of the Southern Tier. 1996. p. 174.
  5. News: Коммунисты России регистрируются в противовес КПРФ. Рункевич. Дмитрий. Life.ru. 9 March 2017. ru.
  6. News: 11 July 2016. ru:КПРФ не смогла стать единственной коммунистической партией. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20200629150219/https://www.vedomosti.ru/politics/articles/2016/07/11/648777-kprf-edinstvennoi-kommunisticheskoi-partiei. 29 June 2020. 6 September 2021. Vedomosti. ru.
  7. News: 18 April 2016. ru:«Коммунисты России» готовятся нанести «сталинские удары». ru. Kommersant. live. 6 September 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210906235653/https://www.kommersant.ru/doc/2967145. 6 September 2021.
  8. Web site: 22 November 2015. ru:На политической панели. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20210906232406/http://www.rotfront.su/%D0%BD%D0%B0-%D0%BF%D0%BE%D0%BB%D0%B8%D1%82%D0%B8%D1%87%D0%B5%D1%81%D0%BA%D0%BE%D0%B9-%D0%BF%D0%B0%D0%BD%D0%B5%D0%BB%D0%B8/. 6 September 2021. 6 September 2021. Russian United Labour Front. ru.
  9. Web site: 13 July 2020. ru:Сурайкин остаётся с мальчиками по вызову: в партии «Коммунисты России» наметился раскол. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20210725165511/https://bloknot.ru/politika/surajkin-ostayotsya-s-mal-chikami-po-vy-zovu-v-partii-kommunisty-rossii-nametilsya-raskol-690280.html. 25 July 2021. 6 September 2021. bloknot.ru. ru.
  10. Web site: 25 August 2021. Back with a vengeance. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20210906230646/https://meduza.io/en/feature/2021/08/25/back-with-a-vengeance. 6 September 2021. 6 September 2021. Meduza. en.
  11. Web site: Коммунисты России заявили об отставке лидера партии Сурайкина. ru. URA.ru. 19 March 2022.
  12. Web site: Минюст признал законной смену лидера Коммунистов России. ru. Kommersant. 24 March 2022.
  13. Web site: Le parti des Communistes de Russie désigne son dirigeant comme candidat à l'élection présidentielle. December 28, 2023. Le Figaro.
  14. Web site: Russian Central Election Commission: pre-election campaigning in the media starts on February 17. January 17, 2024. Orient.
  15. Web site: Нажбудинова . Амалия . 2023-12-28 . "Коммунисты России" выдвинули Малинковича в кандидаты на выборах президента . 2023-12-29 . Известия . ru.
  16. Web site: Comunistas de Rusia nombra a Sergei Malinkovich como candidato a las elecciones presidenciales de 2024. December 28, 2023. Europa Press Internacional.
  17. Web site: Tenisheva . Anastasia . 2024-02-08 . Russian Election Authority Rejects Pro-Peace Hopeful Nadezhdin’s Presidential Bid . 2024-06-05 . The Moscow Times . en.
  18. News: 11 September 2018. ru:Осколки до Енисея. ru. Kommersant. live. 7 September 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20200703052612/https://www.kommersant.ru/doc/3737939. 3 July 2020.
  19. Web site: 13 September 2018. ru:11 мандатов получила «Единая Россия» в заксобрании Ненецкого АО. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20181103210156/https://regnum.ru/news/2481440.html. 3 November 2018. 7 September 2021. REGNUM News Agency. ru.
  20. News: 10 September 2018. ru:Итоги выборов в Законодательное собрание Ростовской области: в донской парламент прошли шесть партий. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20210907002008/https://www.rostov.kp.ru/daily/26879.5/3923078/. 7 September 2021. 6 September 2021. Komsomolskaya Pravda. ru.
  21. Web site: 9 September 2019. ru:Итоги выборов в Тульской области: кто прошел в городскую и областную Думу?. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20200804165846/https://myslo.ru/news/politics/2019-09-09-itogi-vyborov-v-tul-skoj-oblasti-gorodskaya-i-oblastnaya-dumy. 4 August 2020. 7 September 2021. MySlo. ru.
  22. Web site: 12 September 2018. ru:ЕР получила большинство мандатов в заксобрании Ульяновской области. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20190416045658/https://ria.ru/20180912/1528365698.html. 16 April 2019. 7 September 2021. RIA Novosti. ru.
  23. News: 10 September 2018. Yar.kp.ru -. ru:В ярославской облдуме станет больше коммунистов и меньше единороссов: итоги выборов 9 сентября. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20191013055647/https://www.yar.kp.ru/daily/26879/3923449/. 13 October 2019. 7 September 2021. Komsomolskaya Pravda. ru. Клещев. Александр.