8g. Main important bodies in structure of party and gov in 1920s

Flowchart nodes

• The Relationship of the Government to the Communist Party:   Key officials in the government were members of the Communist Party.    Senior members of the government were usually senior members of the party.    Increasingly, government bodies became simply the instruments for carrying out the policies made in the Politburo and higher levels of the party. 

• Politburo:   Membership: 7-9 members chosen by the Central Committee. Met on almost daily basis.    Role: Leading decision-making body of the CP - the inner cabinet. Set up 1919. Took over from unwieldy Central Committee as most influential body of the CP. It increasingly took power from the Sovnarkom. Made the key decisions. 

• Central Committee:    Membership: 30-40 members.    Role: Ran party affairs when congresses weren't sitting. It was the main party body until 1919 and continued to discuss and vote on key party issues, although power lay increasingly with the Politburo. 

• Council of People's Commissars (Sovnarkom):   Membership: 15-20 members under Lenin, who was chairman. Members came from the Central Executive Committee.    Role: Key decision-making body- issued orders & decrees. Met daily and decided important aspects of policy. Became less important in the early 1920s as the Communist Party took more control. 

• Central Executive Committee (former executive of the Soviet):    Membership: Elected by Congress of Soviets.    Role: Made laws and oversaw the administration of the government when the Congress wasn't meeting. Its functions overlapped with those of the Sovnarkom. In practice, had little power. 

• All-Russian Congress of Soviets:    Membership: Delegates were elected by city and provincial soviets, although membership was weighted in favour of the cities. Met twice (later only once) a year.    Role: Was the supreme law-making authority.

• Communist Party

• Communist Party