(September 6, 1933)

1. This year's election coincides with the year in which we have completely
smashed the enemy's Fourth "Encirclement and Suppression" and in which we are
continuing to win victories in smashing the Fifth "Encirclement and Suppression."
present is to redouble our efforts to defeat the Fifth "Encirclement and Suppres-sion" and to oppose imperialist efforts to partition China. We are confronted with
large-scale revolution and war. Led by the Communist Party, the soviets are the
organizers and leaders of revolution and war. This year's soviet election takes
place at a key moment in the smashing of the Fifth "Encirclement and Suppres-sion." We have to elect powerful soviets to organize and lead the war. Such is
the crucial significance of this year's elections. This is also the year in which the
Second Soviet Congress will be convened. This year's Soviet Congress is going
to elect a new Central Government, which will serve as the organizer and leader
of revolution and war on the scale of the whole country. In order that the Second
Soviet Congress may be able to shoulder its great historical responsibilities, this
year's elections must be regarded as no ordinary matter.
2. In order to understand the importance of the elections, we must explain the
function of the soviets.
The soviets of the democratic dictatorship of the workers and peasants have a
dual function. Both aspects are directly opposed to the role of the old ruling class
government. The first aspect is that the soviet of the workers' and peasants'
democratic dictatorship serves as a weapon against the counterrevolutionaries. It
uses war to eliminate external counterrevolutionaries. We have been fighting
against the enemy's "Encirclement and Suppression," have launched a victorious
offensive, and are carrying out the task of waging revolutionary war against the
counterrevolutionary forces throughout the country. At the same time, it uses the
courts to suppress internal counterrevolutionaries. This is how we have dealt
with the AB Corps, the Reorganization Clique, the Social Democratic Party, and
all landlords and capitalists within the Soviet Area. As soon as they engage in
counterrevolutionary activities, we immediately suppress them. The revolutionary classes the workers, the peasants, and the toiling masses use this weapon
of the soviets to deal with all the counterrevolutionaries, both internal and exter- nal. This is the first function of the soviets. We must defeat these counterrevolutionaries, for only thus can our class become the ruling class and our
government become the ruling government. All of you comrades have seen that
we are now the rulers, because we have defeated the innumerable attacks of the
enemy and suppressed all counterrevolutionary activities. Now let me speak of
the second function. The soviet of the workers' and peasants' democratic dictatorship is the instrument by which the masses govern their own lives. The lives
of our worker-peasant masses used to be completely controlled by the landlords
and the bourgeoisie. Because they had power, they had freedom, but they allowed no freedom to us. Peasants had no land; workers had no labor laws to
protect them. How is it today? Peasants have land and workers are protected by
the Labor Law. Our own political power has given us freedom. Under our own
régime, we are carrying out all sorts of necessary construction. We have total
control over our own lives. We are truly free and equal; we are not subject to
interference from any landlords or capitalists. On the contrary, we exercise autocracy and dictatorship over the landlords and capitalists and do not allow a
single one of them to participate in our government. We establish all sorts of
laws to rule them and do not give them the slightest bit of political freedom. This
is the second aspect of the function of the soviets. All revolutionary struggles in
the world have as their goal the seizure and consolidation of political power. The
desperate struggles of the counterrevolutionaries against the revolutionary forces
are also entirely for the sake of maintaining their own political power. The
worker and peasant masses in the soviet areas have already seized power. We
should always be on guard to defend and develop this power, so as to enable it to
perform fully its vital roles of suppressing internal and external counterrevolutionary forces and enhancing the wellbeing of the workers and peasants. To
enable the soviet to exercise these functions, we need to use the method of
elections to draw into the soviets a large number of the most conscious, progressive, and active elements, and to weed out the incompetents among the old
personnel. This is an extremely important matter. Many people have not yet
realized clearly enough the weighty significance of political power and of the
elections. Without being fully aware of this function, truly active participation in
the elections is impossible. Without understanding this function, soviet personnel
will not be able to lead the elections really well. Comrades, we will be carrying
out the elections very soon. In order to make propaganda immediately among the
masses about the functions of the soviets and of the elections, all soviet personnel must themselves have clearly understood this. Only this will make the present elections the best we have held and will mobilize the masses as one to fight
for a powerful soviet of the democratic dictatorship of the workers and peasants.
3. Favorable conditions in this year's elections.
Since we are faced at present with an extremely critical moment in the revolution and in the war, and the role of the soviets and of the elections is so important, can we carry out the task of this year's elections? Our answer is that we can.

We have many favorable conditions in this year's elections. First, despite the
tremendous scale of the enemy's Fifth "Encirclement and Suppression," we have
already won initial victories. In the past two months, we have won three great
battles in a row. In the first battle, we occupied Liancheng and defeated the
Nineteenth Route Army. In the second battle, we occupied Wujiang and defeated
the Eightieth Division. In the third battle, we laid siege to Yanping, defeated the
enemy's reinforcements, and seized more than six thousand guns in all. We are
having an election when the Red Army is winning great victories. Second, we
are carrying out this year's election in a wider territory, for the Soviet Area has
been expanded significantly in the course of our victory in the Fourth "Encircle-ment and Suppression." This year we are having elections in ten soviet provinces: Jiangxi, Fujian, Guangdong-Jiangxi, Fujian-Jiangxi, Fujian-Zhejiang-
Jiangxi, Hunan-Jiangxi, Hunan-Hubei-Jiangxi, Hubei-Henan-Anhui, West
Hunan-Hubei, and Sichuan. The scale of the elections is greater. Third, in all
these numerous soviet provinces, class struggle in the cities and in the countryside has penetrated more deeply than was the case last year. We have achieved
numerous successes in the Land Investigation Movement, in carrying out the
Labor Law, in the progress of culture and education, and in launching economic
construction. The Land Investigation Movement in particular has ferreted out
many concealed landlords and rich peasants and deprived them of their right to
vote. A large number of bad elements hidden in the soviet organs have also been
purged, thus laying a foundation for carrying out this year's elections more
successfully. Fourth, we have had the experience of past elections, especially last
year's elections, which have provided many valuable lessons for this year's
elections. We must definitely continue to draw on the good results of past elections and enhance them. Shortcomings and mistakes that have occurred in past
elections we should, on the other hand, completely avoid and reject. We should
not commit similar mistakes again this year. The Central Government instruction
regarding the elections has reached a correct conclusion about what constitutes
the achievements and what constitutes the errors of past elections. Comrades
should study the instruction carefully. Every soviet cadre should study it carefully. We should also explain it clearly to all the masses of the voters. Only by correctly evaluating past lessons can we make sure that this election campaign
proceeds smoothly.
4. How to guide this year's elections.
Comrades, we have come to understand that this year's elections coincide
with the efforts of the imperialists and of the Guomindang to carve up China and
to carry out the Fifth "Encirclement and Suppression," thus greatly increasing
the political task of this year's elections. We have also come to realize the great
revolutionary function of the soviets. Furthermore, this year's elections are to be
carried out under many favorable conditions. Therefore, we must guide these
elections very well and strive with all our might to achieve complete victory in
this election. The election regulations and the instruction regarding the elections
promulgated by the Central Government have enumerated clearly the principles
and methods of the elections, so there is no need for me to repeat all of this here.
Today I will simply call our comrades' attention to a few important issues,
urging the comrades to pay attention. These points are electoral propaganda and
agitation, basic-level elections, voter registration, work reports, election units,
candidate lists, mass meetings of voters, and the tasks of the election committees.
Allow me to explain briefly these very important issues in this election, to which
every comrade should pay attention.
First, about the election propaganda. The most extensive propaganda should
be carried out in the three weeks prior to this year's elections. We must explain
very clearly the relation between our efforts to smash the Fifth "Encirclement
and Suppression" and to oppose the partition of China by the imperialists, and
this year's elections. We must elucidate the revolutionary function of the soviets
so that everyone understands it. We should also explain that this year's elections
are taking place on a basis of victory. We must make the masses regard the
elections as very important, and at the same time see to it that they have sufficient self-confidence to participate in the elections and will elect to the soviets
many progressive elements, so that all those who are elected will take responsibility for important national affairs with the utmost courage. Such propaganda
and agitation is a prerequisite for a successful election. Without such propaganda
and agitation, the masses will still understand neither the current political situation, nor the function of the soviets, nor the basis for a victorious election. In that
case, the masses will not be enthusiastic about participating in the elections, nor
will those elected be full of courage. In the first elections last year, propaganda
was relatively successful and consequently the results were relatively good. If
the propaganda for the second elections is deficient, the results will necessarily
be unsatisfactory. This year's propaganda must improve on that of last year's
first elections, for only thus can we rouse the majority of the masses to participate in the electoral meetings.
Second, meetings of municipal and township deputies are the basic unit of the
soviets. Therefore, elections in the towns and the countryside are the basic elections of the soviets. The municipal and township soviets constitute the level closest to the masses. All the laws and decrees of the higher-level soviets regarding the expansion of the Red Army, the Land Investigation Movement, putting
into practice the Labor Law, and economic and cultural construction can be
effectively carried out only through the municipal and township soviets. Hence
the elections to the municipal and township soviets are of the most fundamental
importance. Moreover, if the All-Soviet Congress is to be successful, provincial
soviet congresses must elect very good deputies; if the provincial soviet congresses are to be successful, the xian soviet congresses must elect very good
deputies; if the xian soviet congresses are to be successful, district and municipal
soviet congresses must elect very good deputies. And what is required to have a
good district soviet congress? The meeting of delegates to the township soviet
must elect very good deputies. If we look at things this way, do not the elections
to municipal and township soviets affect the elections to the district soviets, the
xian soviets, the provincial soviets, and even the national level? Therefore, the
elections of the municipal and township soviets are the most basic and the most
important elections. Comrades, on one side of our meeting place there is a
monument to Red Army martyrs under construction. This monument has a stone
foundation 1.5 zhang thick. We want to build a solid monument, therefore we
must begin by laying a solid foundation. We want to build a solid soviet, therefore we must lay a solid foundation, and that foundation is the soviets of municipal and township deputies. Third, if we want to establish strong municipal and
township soviets, not only must we use the most extensive propaganda to make
the majority of the masses participate in the election conferences; we should also
make sure that all the voters who attend these conferences are genuine workers,
peasants, or other people eligible to vote, that not one single disenfranchised
person sneaks in, and that not one person who should be deprived of the right to
vote steals in by passing himself off as a worker or peasant. This work is called
voter registration. To draw a strict line between the franchised and disenfranchised is the basic starting point of soviet political power; it is also the most
important article in the soviet constitution and electoral laws. Look at the base of
that monument. Is it not made of stone? Consequently, the monument is solid. If
you mixed in some mud or compost in the base, this monument would not be so
solid. If we want to build a strong soviet, we must begin by seeing to it that not a
single landlord, rich peasant, or capitalist steals the right to vote.
Fourth, last year's election units were too large, and this year we have made
them smaller. Article 11 of the Election Law prescribes that workers hold their
election meetings separately, that peasants vote in the small village units, and that
poor masses in the cities vote in neighborhood units. This change will have a
great influence in achieving a completely successful result in the elections.

Smaller units will not only ensure that a majority of the voters, or even all of them,
attend the electoral meeting, but will make it easier for voters to choose among the
candidates and will lead to more and better nominations. It will also be easier to
deprive certain candidates of their mandate later on. For these reasons, our comrades
must be careful not to enlarge this year's electoral units again.
Fifth, regarding the work reports of the municipal and township soviets to the
voters, the Central Commissariat for Internal Affairs has already drawn up an
outline. In accordance with this outline, the district soviets are to guide the
township soviets in calling mass meetings in all the villages and making reports
there. In last year's elections, this reporting system was not carried out in many
localities. This year, it should definitely be put into practice, because making
reports to the masses actually provides an opportunity for testing the
government's work among the masses, and this can raise the enthusiasm of the
voters for the elections to new heights. On all those days when governments at
the district level and higher have the occasion to attend meetings of deputies at
the lower levels, they should always make a work report.
Sixth, lists of candidates. Careful preparation of a list of candidates is an
important key link in a successful election. It is stated in the instruction of the
Central Government that comments on the lists of candidates by all mass organizations should be collected before the election. The comments should, moreover,
be made public so the voters can give due consideration to all the candidates. As
regards the list of candidates, attention should be paid first of all to class status.
Not only must we, in accordance with the election law, see to it that the appropriate number of workers and peasants are elected; we must also, as laid down in
the instructions regarding the elections, make sure that at least 25 percent of
those elected are working women. Our next priority is political performance. All
those who fall into the categories of corrupt individuals, negative elements,
slackers, or those who compromise with the landlords, rich peasants, and capitalists must not be elected. Each and every person elected should be one who works
actively and has the right kind of thinking. Then, we need to pay a certain
amount of attention to capacity to do the work. Those whose abilities are excessively low should not be taken into the government. We should also make sure
that all those soviet workers now in office, including deputies, committee members, chairmen, and so on, who have committed egregious errors such as corruption, negative attitudes, slacking, and shielding landlords, rich peasants, and
capitalists, and have not redressed these errors, are not reelected. On the other
hand, those comrades who have worked hard and have correct thinking can, without
the slightest doubt, be reelected. Some people think that every election should bring
in new people and reject all the old people. This is completely wrong.
Seventh, the election meeting. Although the election takes only one day, we
need to spend several weeks preparing for it, because the numerous important
tasks mentioned above require several weeks' preparation if they are to be done
properly. We absolutely cannot wait until the last moment, putting things off from day to day, until we find ourselves, two or three days before the elections,
desperately trying to do everything at once. The eighteen northern xian have now
set the municipal and township elections for the period from September 1 to
October 5. Every district should carry out the actual election during the last ten
days of this period, and use the weeks before September 25 for activities such as
intensive election propaganda, voter registration, work reports, and compiling
lists of candidates. Only this will ensure a satisfactory outcome on election day.
The eighteen southern xian can postpone their elections for one month. The
municipal and township election date can be set for late October, so that Septem-ber and October can be used to make full preparations. Then, when election day
comes, we must do our best to mobilize voters to attend the meeting. This year
we must mobilize the overwhelming majority of voters to attend the election
meeting and make sure that the election is successfully carried out in one meeting. Try to avoid calling a second meeting because of failure to get enough
voters to meet the requirements of the election law. Next, when the list of
candidates is put forward for discussion and decision, we should mobilize the
masses to air their opinions. As happened at last year's Xingguo election meeting, there should be animated criticisms, and if the masses do not approve,
another candidate's name should be put forward. Forcing the masses to endorse
the candidates on the list is absolutely forbidden. If bad elements make trouble
by preparing a list of candidates and coercing the masses to pass it, we will most
certainly punish them severely once the facts are discovered. Finally, after the
election, we should also discuss the proposals put forth by the masses, collect the
masses' comments, and send them to the soviet as guidelines for the administrative work of the new government.
Eighth, we should designate a special committee to be in charge of all the
above-mentioned work. This would be the election committee of the municipal
and district soviets. According to Article 46 of the Election Law, election committee members consist of representatives from the government and all mass
organizations. They must also be approved by the xian soviet. The election
committee is in charge of all work related to the election. Last year, most of the
election committees did not carry out their duties, and once again it was only
government personnel that provided guidance for the elections. As a result,
leadership in the election campaign in many localities was not exercised very
carefully, and there were instances where bad elements in the government manipulated the election. In order to rid ourselves of these defects, we must definitely organize election committees this year. They should be organized jointly
by the government and the mass organizations.
Comrades, I have talked for a long time. I have covered all the important
points concerning the significance of the elections and the work involved in the
elections. There are items I have not covered, such as the need for xian soviets to
provide planned guidance to the district congresses of soviet delegates, the need
for provincial soviets to provide planned guidance to the xian congresses of soviet delegates, the need for the Central Government to provide planned guidance to provincial congresses of soviet delegates, and a few other matters relating to the elections. The election law and the instructions regarding the elections
have, however, given detailed explanations on all these items, and I will say no
more about them here. I hope that you comrades will inform the many comrades
in the xian and district soviets on the major points I have covered when you go
back. They should be laid before conferences of the presidium for detailed discussion. Comrades, this year's elections are no ordinary elections. They are
elections of great historical significance, and they are also a very fierce class
struggle. We have to devote our minds entirely to these elections. Apart from the
many tasks directly related to the elections discussed above, we should seize the
opportunity offered by these elections to unfold the struggle of land investigation
and class investigation, and the accusation movement within the soviets. Only
through the movements for investigating classes and for making accusations can
we discover elements who have stolen the right to vote, and purge bad elements
who have sneaked into the soviets, so as to ensure even greater success in these
elections. This is even more indispensable in the eighteen xian in the south, since
we have two more months to carry out the Land Investigation Movement. More-over, places where the administrative districts have not yet been defined should
do so quickly. If we do all these things, we are firmly persuaded that this year's
elections will achieve a complete victory. At present, proletarians and oppressed
nations all over the world are hoping to see the Chinese soviet movement triumph. All the toiling masses of China have their eyes fixed on the soviet banner.
They know that only the soviets can save China. In the last few days, a congress
against imperialist war has been taking place in Shanghai, attended by representatives from countries all over the world.7 They, too, are warmly wishing for the
victory of the Chinese soviets. Comrades, we should respond to all of these
sincere hopes. What shall we respond with? Let us respond to them by the
success of the elections in the whole of the soviet areas and by our Second
National Soviet Congress. Our slogans are:
Win complete victory in the elections!
Smash the enemy's Fifth "Encirclement and Suppression"!
Oppose the partition of China by the imperialists!
Long live soviet China!

---

Notes

This report was first published in Hongse Zhonghua, no. 108, September 6, 1933. Our
source is Mao Zedong ji, Vol. 4, pp. 13-22, supplemented by the facsimile of Hongse
Zhonghua, in which some additional characters can be deciphered.

1. There is some uncertainty about the timing of the conference of election workers for
the eighteen northern xian in the Central Soviet Area mentioned here. The Zhongyang
geming genjudi cidian (Dictionary of the Central Revolutionary Base Area) (Beijing:
Dang'an chubanshe, 1993), p. 93, says that both this and the corresponding conference of
eighteen southern xian took place from September 6 to 9, 1933, in Yeping, a suburb of the
Ruijin xian city. Yet in this document dated September 6, Mao unambiguously states that
the conference for the northern xian has already been held. In any event, Mao delivered
this speech to the 300-plus delegates on the first day of the conference. Delegates came
from the following xian: Ruijin, Xingguo, Shengli, Yudu, Bosheng, Shicheng, Ganxian,
Huichang, Xunwu, Anyuan, Xinfeng, Nankang (all in Jiangxi); and Shanghang, Chang-ting, Tingdong, Wuping, Xinquan, and Ninghua (all in Fujian). According to Nianpu, Vol.
1, p. 411, Mao also gave the closing speech on September 9, but the text of this is not
available.

2. This is a contraction of Dongpi and Huangpi, sites of decisive battles in the Fourth
Encirclement Campaign.
3. The battles referred to here involved the summer 1933 Fujian campaign of the
Eastern Army [Dongfang jun], a Red Army force led by Peng Dehuai which had been
constituted under the policy of "separate warfare" [fenli zuozhan] then advocated by the
Returned Student leadership.

--- Notes

Comrades, we have already held an election conference for the eighteen northern
xian and now we are having an election conference of the eighteen southern
xian.¹ Comrades, we hold elections every year. Are this year's elections any
different from last year's? Yes, very much so. This year's elections are to build a
stronger soviet—this extremely important class weapon. We should use this
weapon to enhance still further the welfare of the masses, to smash the enemy's new
"Encirclement and Suppression," to oppose the imperialist policy of partitioning
China, and to expand the soviet movement to the whole of China. This, comrades, is
the significance of this year's election. The purpose of my report is to explain this
significance. I will give these explanations under a number of headings.

In the past year, up until our victories at Donghuangpi,² we have completely smashed the enemy's Fourth "Encirclement and Suppression." We have expanded the Red Army, consolidated and developed the soviet area, and led and
assisted the whole nation in the great revolutionary struggles against imperialists,
the Guomindang, the landlords, and the capitalists. This year's revolutionary
victories have surpassed those of last year. What about the counterrevolutionary
side? It is becoming weaker and weaker. But the counterrevolutionaries are still
struggling desperately for survival. The imperialists especially, faced with world
revolution and war, are desperately stepping up their invasion of China. Japan
has already created a Manchukuo under the cover of their artillery and is attempting to set up a Mongolian state [Mengguguo] as well. England wants to set
up a Tibetan state [Xizangguo] in western China. France is invading Yunnan and
Guizhou, and the United States wants to divide up the provinces along the
Yangzi River. All these imperialists are ordering their running dog, the
Guomindang, to turn China into a colony. The imperialist Guomindang is just
now launching a large-scale Fifth "Encirclement and Suppression." Our duty at

4. Because the territory of the Chinese Soviet Republic at this time was somewhat
fragmented, the preceding list includes, in addition to established provinces such as Jiangxi
and Fujian, a number of base areas comprising portions of two or three provinces, which
were treated as provinces for administrative purposes. The name of the last of the "ten
provinces" poses a problem. In the text as published in Hongse Zhonghua, this reads quite
clearly sizhou, the second character being that for Zhou [Dynasty). The editors of the Mao
Zedong ji have taken this to be a typographical error for Sichuan, where a base area existed
under the leadership of Zhang Guotao, and we have followed them here.

5. The zhang is a unit of length equal to 10 Chinese feet (chi), or approximately 3.3
meters.

6. See above, the Provisional Election Law of August 9, 1933.

7. See above, "Telegram of Congratulations from the Central Government on the
Opening of the International Conference Against Imperialism and War."