List of communist parties facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts

This article is about political groups called communist parties. These groups have different ideas, but they all generally follow the teachings of Karl Marx and Vladimir Lenin.

Communist parties first started to form around the world with help from the Bolsheviks in Russia. Since then, some communist parties have led countries as the only ruling party, like the Chinese Communist Party. Others have been part of governments in countries where many parties exist.

Many communist parties have never led a whole country. Instead, they might have led a state or region within a country. Some have also had members in national or local parliaments. Some communist groups don't believe in working within parliaments. They prefer to bring about change through social revolution or by setting up workers' councils.

Countries Led by Communist Parties
Communist Parties in Other Governments
Communist Parties in Opposition
Past Communist Rule
- Countries with One-Party Communist Rule in the Past
- Communist Parties Formerly in Government Coalitions
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Countries Led by Communist Parties

In these countries, communist parties are the main ruling party. Their country's laws say they hold the most power.

Country	Name	Leader	Started	Main Ideas	How Many in Government	Notes
China	Communist Party of China	Xi Jinping	1 July 1921 (1921-07-01)	Marxism–Leninism and Socialism with Chinese characteristics	National People's Congress: 2,091 / 2,980	This party leads a group of different parties.
Cuba	Communist Party of Cuba	Miguel Díaz-Canel	3 October 1965 (1965-10-03)	Marxism–Leninism and Left-wing nationalism	National Assembly: 605 / 605	This party leads local community groups.
Laos	Lao People's Revolutionary Party	Thongloun Sisoulith	22 May 1955 (1955-05-22)	Marxism–Leninism	National Assembly: 158 / 164	This party leads a national development group.
North Korea	Workers' Party of Korea	Kim Jong Un	24 June 1948 (1948-06-24)	Kimilsungism–Kimjongilism	Supreme People's Assembly: 607 / 687	This party leads a group for uniting Korea.
Vietnam	Communist Party of Vietnam	Nguyễn Phú Trọng	3 February 1930 (1930-02-03)	Marxism–Leninism and Ho Chi Minh Thought	National Assembly: 485 / 499	This party leads the Vietnamese Fatherland Front.

Communist Parties in Other Governments

These communist parties are either leading the government or are part of the ruling group in countries with more than one political party.

Country	Name	Leader	Started	Main Ideas	How Many in Government	Notes
Bangladesh	Workers Party of Bangladesh	Rashed Khan Menon		Marxism-Leninism	Jatiya Sangsad: 1 / 350	Supports the government.
Belarus	Communist Party of Belarus	Aliaksiej Sokal	2 November 1996 (1996-11-02)	Marxism–Leninism	House of Representatives: 11 / 110	Supports the current president.
Brazil	Communist Party of Brazil	Luciana Santos	25 March 1922	Marxism–Leninism	Chamber of Deputies: 6 / 513	Part of the ruling group.
Chile	Communist Party of Chile	Guillermo Teillier	4 June 1912 (1912-06-04)	Marxism–Leninism	Chamber of Deputies: 12 / 155	Part of the ruling group.
Colombia	Colombian Communist Party	Jaime Caycedo	1930	Marxism–Leninism	Chamber of Representatives: 0 / 188 Senate: 0 / 108	Member of the ruling group.
Colombia	Commons	Timoleón Jiménez	1 September 2017	Marxism–Leninism	Chamber of Representatives: 5 / 188 Senate: 5 / 108	Member of the ruling group.
Nepal	Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist–Leninist)	KP Sharma Oli	6 January 1991 (1991-01-06)	Marxism–Leninism	House of Representatives: 78 / 275 National Assembly: 17 / 59
	Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist Centre)	Pushpa Kamal Dahal	1994 (1994)	Prachanda Path	House of Representatives: 32 / 275
	Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Socialist)	Madhav Kumar Nepal	18 August 2021 (2021-08-18)	Marxism–Leninism	House of Representatives: 10 / 275
Palestine	Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine	Ahmad Sa'adat	11 December 1967 (1967-12-11)	Palestinian nationalism and Marxism–Leninism	Legislative Council: 3 / 132	Member of the PLO.
	Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine	Nayef Hawatmeh	1969 (1969)	Marxism–Leninism and Maoism	Legislative Council: 1 / 132
	Palestinian People's Party	Bassam Al-Salhi	February 1982 (1982-02)	Marxism and Palestinian nationalism	Legislative Council: 1 / 132
South Africa	South African Communist Party	Blade Nzimande	12 February 1921 (1921-02-12)	Marxism–Leninism	National Assembly: 0 / 400	Part of the ruling group.
Spain	Communist Party of Spain	Enrique Santiago	14 November 1921 (1921-11-14)	Marxism–Leninism	Congress of Deputies: 6 / 350	Part of the current government.
Syria	Syrian Communist Party	Ammar Bakdash	1986 (1986)	Marxism–Leninism	People's Assembly: 2 / 250	Part of the ruling group.
Syria	Syrian Communist Party (Unified)	Hanin Nimir	1986 (1986)	Marxism–Leninism	People's Assembly: 2 / 250	Part of the ruling group.
Tajikistan	Communist Party of Tajikistan	Miroj Abdulloyev	1924	Marxism–Leninism	Assembly of Representatives: 2 / 63	Supports the government.
Venezuela	Revolutionary Movement Tupamaro	Oswaldo Jiménez	1992 (1992)	Marxism-Leninism and Guevarism	Chamber of Deputies: 7 / 277	Part of the ruling group.
	Venezuelan Popular Unity	Lina Ron	6 February 2004 (2004-02-06)	Bolivarianism and Socialism	Chamber of Deputies: 2 / 277
	Venezuelan Revolutionary Currents	Ramsés Augusto Reyes Colmenares [es]	2000 (2000)	Guevarism and Chavismo	Chamber of Deputies: 0 / 277

Communist Parties in Opposition

These communist parties are not part of the ruling government. They work as opposition parties in countries with many political parties.

Country	Name	Leader	Started	Main Ideas	How Many in Government	Notes
Argentina	Revolutionary Communist Party	Otto Vargas				Member of a larger political group.
Cyprus	Progressive Party of Working People	Stefanos Stefanou	15 August 1926 (1926-08-15)	Marxism–Leninism	House of Representatives: 15 / 56
France	French Communist Party	Fabien Roussel	30 December 1920	Marxism–Leninism	National Assembly: 12 / 577	An important part of a new environmental and social group.
India	Communist Party of India (Marxist)	Sitaram Yechury		Marxism–Leninism	Rajya Sabha: 5 / 245 Lok Sabha: 3 / 543	Member of a large national group.
Moldova	Party of Communists of the Republic of Moldova	Vladimir Voronin	19 October 1993 (1993-10-19)	Marxism–Leninism	Parliament: 10 / 101	Member of a political block.
Russia	Communist Party of the Russian Federation	Gennady Zyuganov	14 February 1993 (1993-02-14)	Marxism–Leninism	State Duma: 57 / 450 Federation Council: 4 / 178
Transnistria	Transnistrian Communist Party	Nadezhda Bondarenko		Marxism-Leninism		The second most popular party in votes.
Uruguay	Communist Party of Uruguay	Juan Castillo	19 September 1920 (1920-09-19)	Marxism–Leninism	Chamber of Representatives: 6 / 99	Member of a larger political group.
	Movement of Popular Participation	José Mujica	6 April 1989 (1989-04-06)	Marxism–Leninism	Chamber of Representatives: 25 / 99
	People's Victory Party		July 1975	Marxism	Chamber of Representatives: 1 / 99

Past Communist Rule

Some communist parties used to be in charge of countries. Here are some examples:

Countries with One-Party Communist Rule in the Past

These countries were once led by a single communist party.

Country	Name	Leaders	Started	Ended	Main Ideas	Notes
Afghanistan (1978–1992)	People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan	Nur Muhammad Taraki (first) Mohammad Najibullah (last)	1 January 1965 (1965-01-01)	16 April 1992 (1992-04-16)	Marxism–Leninism	This party was removed from power in 1992.
Albania (1946–1992)	Party of Labour of Albania	Enver Hoxha (first) Ramiz Alia (last)	8 November 1941 (1941-11-08)	13 June 1991 (1991-06-13)	Marxism–Leninism	Changed its main ideas in 1991 and is now a different party.
Angola (1975–1992)	People's Movement for the Liberation of Angola	Agostinho Neto (first) João Lourenço (current)	10 December 1956 (1956-12-10)		Marxism–Leninism	Changed its main ideas.
Benin (1975–1990)	People's Revolutionary Party of Benin	Mathieu Kérékou	30 November 1975 (1975-11-30)	30 April 1990 (1990-04-30)	Marxism–Leninism	Changed its main ideas and name.
Bulgaria (1946–1990)	Bulgarian Communist Party	Dimitar Blagoev (first) Aleksandar Lilov (last)	27 May 1919 (1919-05-27)	3 April 1990 (1990-04-03)	Marxism–Leninism	Changed its main ideas and name.
Cambodia (1975–1979)	Communist Party of Kampuchea	Tou Samouth (first) Pol Pot (last)	30 September 1960 (1960-09-30)	6 December 1981 (1981-12-06)	Maoism	This party was replaced by another.
Cambodia (1979–1992)	Kampuchean People's Revolutionary Party	Pen Sovan (first) Heng Samrin (last)	28 June 1951 (1951-06-28) 5 January 1979 (1979-01-05)	17 October 1991 (1991-10-17)	Marxism–Leninism	Changed its main ideas and name.
Czechoslovakia (1948–1990)	Communist Party of Czechoslovakia	Václav Šturc (first) Ladislav Adamec (last)	16 May 1921 (1921-05-16)	3 November 1992 (1992-11-03)	Marxism–Leninism	Split into new parties.
East Germany (1949–1989)	Socialist Unity Party of Germany	Wilhelm Pieck & Otto Grotewohl (first) Egon Krenz (last)	21 April 1946 (1946-04-21)	16 December 1989 (1989-12-16)	Marxism–Leninism	Became part of a new party.
Hungary (1919)	Hungarian Communist Party	Béla Kun (first) Mátyás Rákosi (last)	24 November 1918 (1918-11-24)	22 July 1948 (1948-07-22)	Marxism–Leninism	Removed from power in 1919.
Hungary (1948–1989)	Hungarian Communist Party	Béla Kun (first) Mátyás Rákosi (last)	24 November 1918 (1918-11-24)	22 July 1948 (1948-07-22)	Marxism–Leninism	Joined with another party.
	Hungarian Working People's Party	Mátyás Rákosi (first) János Kádár (last)	22 July 1948 (1948-07-22)	31 October 1956 (1956-10-31)	Marxism–Leninism	Changed its name during a revolution.
	Hungarian Socialist Workers' Party	János Kádár (first) Rezső Nyers (last)	31 October 1956 (1956-10-31)	7 October 1989 (1989-10-07)	Marxism–Leninism	Changed its main ideas and name.
Mongolia (1921–1992)	Mongolian People's Revolutionary Party	Damdin Sükhbaatar (first) Luvsannamsrain Oyun-Erdene (current)	25 June 1920 (1920-06-25)		Marxism–Leninism	Changed its main ideas.
Mozambique (1975–1990)	FRELIMO Party	Eduardo Mondlane (first) Filipe Nyusi (current)	25 June 1962 (1962-06-25)		Marxism–Leninism	Changed its main ideas.
Poland (1944–1989)	Polish Workers' Party	Władysław Gomułka	5 January 1942 (1942-01-05)	16 December 1948 (1948-12-16)	Marxism–Leninism	Joined with another party.
Poland (1944–1989)	Polish United Workers' Party	Bolesław Bierut (first) Mieczysław Rakowski (last)	16 December 1948 (1948-12-16)	30 January 1990 (1990-01-30)	Marxism–Leninism	Changed its main ideas and name.
Romania (1945–1989)	Romanian Communist Party	Gheorghe Cristescu (first) Nicolae Ceaușescu (last)	8 May 1921 (1921-05-08)	22 December 1989 (1989-12-22)	Marxism–Leninism	Dissolved after a revolution.
Somalia (1976–1991)	Somali Revolutionary Socialist Party	Siad Barre	26 June 1976 (1976-06-26)	26 January 1992 (1992-01-26)	Marxism–Leninism	Removed from power in 1991.
Soviet Union (1922–1991)	Communist Party of the Soviet Union	Vladimir Lenin (first) Mikhail Gorbachev (last)	May 1917 (1917-05)	6 November 1991 (1991-11-06)	Leninism and Marxism–Leninism	Banned in 1991.
Yugoslavia (1945–1990)	League of Communists of Yugoslavia	Josip Broz Tito (1939–1980) Milan Pančevski (last)	20 April 1919 (1919-04-20)	22 January 1990 (1990-01-22)	Marxism–Leninism	Split into many smaller parties.

Communist Parties Formerly in Government Coalitions

These communist parties were part of ruling groups with other parties in the past.

Bulgaria (2005–2009, 2013–2014, 2021–2022) – Communist Party of Bulgaria, worked with other parties.
Finland (1944–1948, 1966–1970, 1970–1971, 1975–1976 and 1977–1982) – Finnish People's Democratic League, worked with many other parties.
France (1981–1989; 1997–2002) – French Communist Party as part of larger groups.
India (2004–2008) – Communist Party of India (Marxist) and Communist Party of India, part of a ruling group.
Italy (1998–2001, 2006–2008) – Party of Italian Communists and Communist Refoundation Party, part of ruling groups.
Mali (2005–2014) – Malian Party of Labour, part of a larger group.
Norway (1945) – Communist Party of Norway in a ruling group.
Peru (2011–2016) – Peruvian Communist Party, part of ruling groups.
Portugal (2015–2019) – Portuguese Communist Party supported the government.
San Marino (1945–1957, 1978–1992) – Sammarinese Communist Party, worked with another party.
Sri Lanka (1970–1975, 1994–2000, 2004–2015 and 2020–2022) – Communist Party of Sri Lanka and Lanka Sama Samaja Party, part of ruling groups.
Uruguay (2005–2020) – Communist Party of Uruguay and People's Victory Party, part of ruling groups.