THE PEASANTRY OF THE RUSSIAN NORTHWESTERN PROVINCES AND THE CONSTITUENT ASSEMBLY ELECTION (SEPTEMBER–NOVEMBER 1917)

Abstract

The article deals with such unexplored aspect of the All-Russian Constituent Assembly election, as the participation of the peasant masses of the northwestern provinces of Russia. The author, having studied archival sources, gives evidence of the high peasants activity in the Constituent Assembly election. However, being mostly illiterate, the peasants were unable to register their independent candidate electoral lists, and were forced to vote for the lists of Russian political parties. Peasants gave their preference to the Social Revolutionary party, but the Bolsheviks were able to get quite a number of peasants votes, influencing the peasant masses with the help of soldiers of the Northern and Western fronts of the Russian army loyal to Bolsheviks.