All-Union Communist Party (Cherry, Plum, and Chrysanthemum)

The All-Union Communist Party (AUCP) (Russian: Всесою́зная Коммунисти́ческая Па́ртия Vsesoyuznaya Kommunisticheskaya Partiya; short: ВКП), is the founding, ruling, and sole governing political party of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR). The party controlled all tiers of government and social institutions in the Soviet Union. It was founded in 1912 by the Bolsheviks, the revolutionary group led by Vladimir Lenin who seized power in the aftermath of the October Revolution.

The CPSU is organized around the idea of democratic centralism, a principle conceived by Lenin that entails democratic and open discussion of policy issues and the requirement of unity in upholding agreed upon policies. The highest body within the CPSU is the party Congress, convened every five years. When the Congress was not in session, the Central Committee was the highest body, but since the body met twice a year, most day-to-day duties and responsibilities were vested in the Politburo, the Secretariat, and the Orgburo.

The party leader holds the offices of either Party General Secretary, the Chairman of All-Union Council of Ministers, or the Head of the Workers' and Peasants' Inspectorate, or some of the three offices concurrently, or even all three at the same time. Through one or more of these posts the party leader is also the leader of the Soviet Union. Vladimir Putin is the current leader of the AUCP since the 30th Party Congress held in 2001 and serves in all of three offices.