ABSTRACT
Stalin’s Constitution utilizes the discussion of the draft Constitution to examine the discourse between the central state leadership and citizens as well as the limitations of central power. For the central leadership, mobilizing its citizenry in a variety of state-building campaigns was the main goal of the discussion of the draft Constitution. Central state actors tried to develop enduring institutional forms for territorial administration, military-coercive power, revenue extraction, and other socioeconomic functions through such campaigns. However, the goals of the central leadership at times stood in stark contrast with the people’s expressed interpretation of that social contract. Citizens of the USSR focused on securing rights and privileges, often related to improving their daily lives, from the central government, but also made known their support of and opposition to aspects of the draft Constitution.
