“It is enough that the people know there was an election. The people who cast the votes decide nothing. The people who count the votes decide everything.”
- December 18, 1878 – March 5, 1953
- Born in Georgia
- Politician
- As Secretary General of the Communist Party, he governed the Soviet Union, promoted industrialization and collectivization, and led the Allied forces to victory in World War II, but at the same time, he suffered many casualties from the large-scale political repression known as the Great Purge.
Quote
“It is enough that the people know there was an election. The people who cast the votes decide nothing. The people who count the votes decide everything.”
Explanation
This quote highlights the manipulation of the democratic process, suggesting that the true power lies not with those who vote, but with those who control the outcome of the election—the vote counters. In Stalin’s view, elections were often empty formalities designed to create the illusion of popular participation while the true decisions were made behind the scenes. This reflects the totalitarian nature of Stalin’s regime, where the state held absolute control over every aspect of political life, including elections, which were often rigged to ensure that the Communist Party remained in power.
Historically, this perspective mirrors the lack of true democracy in the Soviet Union, where elections were largely symbolic, and the state’s political apparatus had already determined the winners long before voting took place. Even when elections were held, they were tightly controlled to ensure that the outcomes always favored the party in power. Stalin’s regime relied on manipulating public perception through these controlled elections, while suppressing any genuine political opposition. The “counting” of the votes was the final step in ensuring that the outcome was aligned with the party’s goals, and any potential challenges to the ruling authority were systematically eliminated.
In a broader sense, this quote serves as a cautionary tale about the importance of transparency and the integrity of the electoral process. It underscores the danger of allowing those in power to control both the voting and counting processes, as it can easily lead to fraud, corruption, and the undermining of democracy. Today, it serves as a reminder of the critical need for fair, free, and transparent elections, where the people’s vote genuinely determines the outcome, rather than being shaped or decided by those who control the mechanisms of the state.
