ABSTRACT
This chapter focused on the discourses and practices of “democracy” and “parliamentarism” within the Russian Communist Party (Bolsheviks) in late 1923–early 1924. In contrast to the mainstream interpretation of the debates as a mere factional “struggle for power” among the higher echelons of the Soviet party-state, this chapter offers an analysis of the actual political practices of both the leaders and rank-and-file party members during an open political competition. Such an analysis reveals that although the Bolsheviks were famous for their vocal rejection of (bourgeois) parliamentarism and democracy, within their rhetoric there was a special emphasis on creating a “workers’ democracy.” The 1923 and 1924 debates over the meaning of “democracy” are crucial for understanding the limits of political action and reforms, as they need to be put into the context of the actual practicing of “intraparty democracy,” a process that included long, active debates in press and at assemblies, voting during elections of different bodies, petitioning and protesting cases of unsatisfactory results, and so on. One of the crucial “parliamentarian” features of the Opposition’s program was the principle of proportional representation in elected bodies, which was completely obscured by the ruling majority until the late 1980s. An analysis of the Opposition’s rhetorical approaches to intraparty democracy reveals their complex ideological and organizational nature, loosening the Opposition’s claims against “bureaucratization.” Party conferences witnessed distrust and frustration among the party electorate, which contributed to the overwhelming victory of the ruling faction.
