Democratic Russia

Democratic Russia (Russian: Демократическая Россия, abbreviation: ДемРоссия - 'DemRossiya') was the generic name for several political entities that played a transformative role in Russia's transition from Communist rule:

1) Democratic Russia Election Bloc, association of candidates and their supporters in the 1990 election for the Congress of People's Deputies (CPD), the equivalent of a parliament of RSFSR (Russian Soviet Federal Socialist Republic, Russia's official name within Soviet Union), and for the regional and municipal Soviets. The bloc was formed in January 1990 at a conference of about 150 candidates and campaign workers. The conference adopted a Declaration drafted by Lev Ponomaryov, Sergei Kovalev, Viktor Sheinis et al. The authorship of the bloc's name is attributed to one of its founding members and leaders, Mikhail Astafyev.

In the run-up to the elections, the bloc spearheaded mass rallies in Russia's cities, campaigning against one-party rule. This pressure was a major factor leading to the decision of the Soviet parliament in March 1990 to amend Article 6 of the Soviet Constitution by removing the reference to the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU) as "the leading and guiding force" of Soviet society.

The bloc won the plurality of seats in the election on 26 March 1990 (about 300 out of 1068). It also won majorities in key local Soviets, including Moscow and Leningrad, as well as Sverdlovsk and other major cities.

2) Democratic Russia Caucus, or faction, in CPD, formed from the core membership of the bloc upon the opening of the Congress in May 1990. Its initial membership stood at around 60, but it had the support of allied factions ("Democratic Platform" and "Left Center") set up by other deputies elected with the support of the DR bloc; together, they wielded large influence over unaffiliated deputies. It played the key role in the election of Boris Yeltsin as the Congress' Chairman (speaker) by a 4-vote majority in the third round of voting; the adoption of RSFSR Declaration of Sovereignty on 12 June 1990 (officially celebrated in today's Russia as Independence Day); and the passage of key legislation that transformed Russia's political and economic system in 1990-1992.

In March 1991, it set up an umbrella coalition with allied factions - "Democratic Platform", "Joint Faction of Social Democrats and Republicans" (formerly "Left Center"), "Radical Democrats", "Independents" and "Labor Union". This coalition, under the name of Democratic Russia Parliamentary Bloc and other names, held sway in the Russian parliament until spring 1992.

...
Wikipedia