Several past and present states have declared themselves

socialist state A socialist state, socialist republic, or socialist country, sometimes referred to as a workers' state or workers' republic, is a sovereign state constitutionally dedicated to the establishment of socialism. The term '' communist state'' is ...

s or in the process of building

socialism Socialism is a left-wing economic philosophy and movement encompassing a range of economic systems characterized by the dominance of social ownership of the means of production as opposed to private ownership. As a term, it describes th ...

. The majority of self-declared socialist countries have been Marxist–Leninist or inspired by it, following the model of the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nationa ...

or some form of

people's People's, branded as ''People's Viennaline'' until May 2018, and legally ''Altenrhein Luftfahrt GmbH'', is an Austrian airline headquartered in Vienna. It operates scheduled and charter passenger flights mainly from its base at St. Gallen-Altenr ...

national democracy National Democracy may refer to: * National Democracy (Czech Republic) * National Democracy (Italy) * National Democracy (Philippines) * National Democracy (Poland) * National Democracy (Spain) See also * Civic nationalism, a general concept * ...

. They share a common definition of socialism and they refer to themselves as socialist states on the road to

communism Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, ...

with a leading

vanguard party Vanguardism in the context of Leninist revolutionary struggle, relates to a strategy whereby the most class-conscious and politically "advanced" sections of the proletariat or working class, described as the revolutionary vanguard, form organ ...

structure, hence they are often called

communist state A communist state, also known as a Marxist–Leninist state, is a one-party state that is administered and governed by a communist party guided by Marxism–Leninism. Marxism–Leninism was the state ideology of the Soviet Union, the Comint ...

s. Meanwhile, the countries in the non-Marxist–Leninist category represent a wide variety of different interpretations of the term socialism and in many cases the countries do not define what they mean by it. Modern uses of the term ''socialism'' are wide in meaning and interpretation. Because a

sovereign state A sovereign state or sovereign country, is a political entity represented by one central government that has supreme legitimate authority over territory. International law defines sovereign states as having a permanent population, defined ter ...

is a different entity from the

political party A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular country's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific ideological or p ...

that governs that state at any given time, a country may be ruled by a

socialist party Socialist Party is the name of many different political parties around the world. All of these parties claim to uphold some form of socialism, though they may have very different interpretations of what "socialism" means. Statistically, most of ...

without the country itself claiming to be socialist or the socialist party being written into the

constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organisation or other type of entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed. When these pr ...

. This has occurred in both

one-party A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government ...

and

multi-party In political science, a multi-party system is a political system in which multiple political parties across the political spectrum run for national elections, and all have the capacity to gain control of government offices, separately or in coa ...

political systems. In particular, there are numerous cases of

social democratic Social democracy is a political, social, and economic philosophy within socialism that supports political and economic democracy. As a policy regime, it is described by academics as advocating economic and social interventions to promote so ...

and

democratic socialist Democratic socialism is a left-wing political philosophy that supports political democracy and some form of a socially owned economy, with a particular emphasis on economic democracy, workplace democracy, and workers' self-management within ...

parties winning elections in

liberal democratic Liberal democracy is the combination of a liberal political ideology that operates under an indirect democratic form of government. It is characterized by elections between multiple distinct political parties, a separation of powers into di ...

states and ruling for a number of terms until a different party wins the elections. While socialist parties have won many elections around the world and most elections in the

Nordic countries The Nordic countries (also known as the Nordics or ''Norden''; lit. 'the North') are a geographical and cultural region in Northern Europe and the North Atlantic. It includes the sovereign states of Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sw ...

, none of those countries have adopted socialism as a state

ideology An ideology is a set of beliefs or philosophies attributed to a person or group of persons, especially those held for reasons that are not purely epistemic, in which "practical elements are as prominent as theoretical ones." Formerly applied pri ...

or written the party into the constitution. Several countries with liberal democratic constitutions mention socialism.

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area, the List of countries and dependencies by population, second-most populous ...

is a democracy that has been governed by non-socialist parties on many occasions, but its

makes references to socialism. Certain other countries such as

Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Cr ...

Myanmar Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John Wells explai ...

, and

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...

have constitutions that make references to their communist and socialist past by recognizing or condemning it, but without claiming to be socialist in the present.

Overview

Self-identification is the only criterion used by the list, therefore it includes all countries that have claimed to be

socialist Socialism is a left-wing economic philosophy and movement encompassing a range of economic systems characterized by the dominance of social ownership of the means of production as opposed to private ownership. As a term, it describes the ...

, even if their claims are disputed. All countries that have not claimed to be socialist are excluded, even in cases where certain outside observers regarded those countries as socialist.

Mao Zedong Mao Zedong pronounced ; also Romanization of Chinese, romanised traditionally as Mao Tse-tung. (26 December 1893 – 9 September 1976), also known as Chairman Mao, was a Chinese communist revolutionary who was the List of national founde ...

and the

Communist Party of China The Chinese Communist Party (CCP), officially the Communist Party of China (CPC), is the founding and sole ruling party of the People's Republic of China (PRC). Under the leadership of Mao Zedong, the CCP emerged victorious in the Chinese Ci ...

considered the

Taiping Heavenly Kingdom The Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, later shortened to the Heavenly Kingdom or Heavenly Dynasty, was an unrecognised rebel kingdom in China and a Chinese Christian theocratic absolute monarchy from 1851 to 1864, supporting the overthrow of the Q ...

to be a

proto-communist While Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels defined communism as a political movement, there were already similar ideas in the past which one could call communist experiments. Marx himself saw primitive communism as the original hunter-gatherer state of ...

state, although the kingdom never declared itself socialist, hence it is not included on this list. The list includes countries that assert in their

s that they are based on socialism, regardless of their economic or political system. It does not list countries that do not have constitutional references to socialism as

s, even in cases where the government is currently run by a

or other

left-wing Left-wing politics describes the range of political ideologies that support and seek to achieve social equality and egalitarianism, often in opposition to social hierarchy. Left-wing politics typically involve a concern for those in soci ...

(

centre-left Centre-left politics lean to the left on the left–right political spectrum but are closer to the centre than other left-wing politics. Those on the centre-left believe in working within the established systems to improve social justice. The ...

and

far-left Far-left politics, also known as the radical left or the extreme left, are politics further to the left on the left–right political spectrum than the standard political left. The term does not have a single definition. Some scholars conside ...

) parties. Inversely, countries that do maintain constitutional references to socialism are listed, even when those countries are governed by non-socialist parties. The list is best understood as a list of countries that explicitly claim to be socialist and it does not reflect the actual economic systems themselves.

Current socialist states

Marxist–Leninist states

Non-Marxist–Leninist states

Countries with constitutional references to socialism

Socialist territories with limited recognition

These are territories that have claimed independence or autonomy and have declared themselves socialist under some interpretation of the term. While these territories have created stable institutions of governance that have existed for a considerable period of time, they are not widely recognized as states by the international community and officially belong to other sovereign states under international law. *

Wa State Wa State, my, ဝပြည်နယ် is an autonomous self-governing polity in Myanmar (Burma). It is ''de facto'' independent from the rest of the country and has its own political system, administrative divisions and army.29 December 2 ...

(April 1989 – present) *

Rebel Zapatista Autonomous Municipalities Rebel Zapatista Autonomous Municipalities (Spanish: ''Municipios Autónomos Rebeldes Zapatistas'', ''MAREZ'') are ''de facto'' autonomous territories controlled by the neo-Zapatista support bases in the Mexican state of Chiapas, founded followi ...

(December 1994 – present) *

Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria The Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES), also known as Rojava, is a de facto autonomous region in northeastern Syria. It consists of self-governing sub-regions in the areas of Afrin, Jazira, Euphrates, Raqqa, Tabqa, ...

(November 2013 – present)

Former socialist states

Marxist–Leninist states

Non-Marxist–Leninist states

Ephemeral socialist states

These are short-lived political entities that emerged during wars, revolutions, or unrest and declared themselves socialist under some interpretation of the term, but which did not survive long enough to create a stable government or achieve international recognition. *

Paris Commune The Paris Commune (french: Commune de Paris, ) was a revolutionary government that seized power in Paris, the capital of France, from 18 March to 28 May 1871. During the Franco-Prussian War of 1870–71, the French National Guard had defende ...

(18 March 1871 – 28 May 1871) * Republic of Guria (May 1902 – 10 January 1906) * Strandzha Commune (18 August 1903 – 8 September 1903) * (1917–1921) *

Crimean People's Republic The Crimean People's Republic ( crh, Qırım Halq Cumhuriyeti; uk, Кримська народна республіка, translit=Kryms'ka narodna respublika; russian: Крымская народная республика, translit=Krymskaya ...

(1917–1918) * Soviet Republic of Soldiers and Fortress-Builders of Naissaar (December 1917 – February 1918) * (1918–1919) * (1918–1919) *

Finnish Socialist Workers' Republic The Finnish Socialist Workers' Republic (FSWR), more commonly referred to as Red Finland, was a self-proclaimed Finland, Finnish socialist state that ruled parts of the country during the Finnish Civil War of 1918. It was outlined on 29 January 1 ...

(28 January 1918 – 29 April 1918) * Odessa Soviet Republic (31 January 1918 – 13 March 1918) *

Donetsk–Krivoy Rog Soviet Republic The Donetsk–Krivoy Rog Soviet Republic or Donetsk–Kryvyi Rih Soviet Republic (russian: Донецко-Криворожская советская республика , translit = Donetsko-Krivorozhskaya sovyetskaya respublika, ) was a se ...

(12 February 1918 – May 1918) *

Baku Commune Baku (, ; az, Bakı ) is the capital and largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and of the Caucasus region. Baku is located below sea level, which makes it the lowest lying national capital in the world ...

(13 April 1918 - 25 July 1918) *

Democratic Republic of Georgia The Democratic Republic of Georgia (DRG; ka, საქართველოს დემოკრატიული რესპუბლიკა ') was the first modern establishment of a republic of Georgia, which existed from May 1918 to F ...

(May 1918 – February 1921) *

People's State of Bavaria The People's State of Bavaria (german: Volksstaat Bayern) was a short-lived socialist state in Bavaria from 1918 to 1919. The People's State of Bavaria was established on 8 November 1918 during the German Revolution, as an attempt at a socialist ...

(8 November 1918 – 6 April 1919) *

Alsace Soviet Republic November 1918 was the period of transition when the region of Alsace-Lorraine passed from German to French sovereignty at the end of World War I. During this month, international events were linked to domestic troubles, particularly the German ...

(9 November 1918 – 22 November 1918) * Soldiers' Council of Strasbourg (9 November 1918 – 22 November 1918) * Free Socialist Republic of Germany (9 November 1918 – 11 August 1919) * Mainz Workers' and Soldiers' Council (9 November 1918 – 9 December 1918) * Alsace-Lorraine Soviet Republic (10 November 1918 – 22 November 1918) *

Commune of the Working People of Estonia The Commune of the Working People of Estonia ( et, Eesti Töörahva Kommuun, initially '; russian: Эстляндская трудовая коммуна , or ETK) was an unrecognised government claiming the Bolshevik-occupied parts of Republic ...

(29 November 1918 – 5 June 1919) * Saxon Soviet Republic (November 1918 – March 1919) *

Latvian Socialist Soviet Republic The Latvian Socialist Soviet Republic ( lv, Latvijas Sociālistiskā Padomju Republika, LSPR) was a short-lived socialist republic formed during the Latvian War of Independence. It was proclaimed on 17 December 1918 with the political, econom ...

(17 December 1918 – 13 January 1920) *

Hungarian People's Republic The Hungarian People's Republic ( hu, Magyar Népköztársaság) was a one-party state, one-party socialist state from 20 August 1949 to 23 October 1989. It was governed by the Hungarian Socialist Workers' Party, which was under the influence ...

(16 November 1918 – 21 March 1919) *

Makhnovshchina The Makhnovshchina () was an attempt to form a stateless anarchist society in parts of Ukraine during the Russian Revolution of 1917–1923. It existed from 1918 to 1921, during which time free soviets and libertarian communes operated un ...

(27 November 1918 – 28 August 1921) * Würzburg Soviet Republic (1919) * Bremen Soviet Republic (10 January 1919 – 4 February 1919) * Lithuanian–Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic (27 February 1919 – 25 August 1919) * Republic of Councils in Hungary (21 March 1919 – 6 August 1919) * Mughan Soviet Republic (March 1919 – June 1919) *

Bavarian Soviet Republic The Bavarian Soviet Republic, or Munich Soviet Republic (german: Räterepublik Baiern, Münchner Räterepublik),Hollander, Neil (2013) ''Elusive Dove: The Search for Peace During World War I''. McFarland. p.283, note 269. was a short-lived unre ...

(6 April 1919 – 3 May 1919) * Crimean Socialist Soviet Republic (28 April 1919 – 26 June 1919) * Bessarabian Soviet Socialist Republic (May 1919 – September 1919; 15 September 1924 – 18 September 1924) *

Slovak Soviet Republic The Slovak Soviet Republic ( sk, Slovenská republika rád, hu, Szlovák Tanácsköztársaság, uk, Словацька Радянська Республіка, literally: 'Slovak Republic of Councils') was a short-lived Communist state in sout ...

(16 June 1919 – 7 July 1919) * People's Republic of Mongolia (1921–1924) *

Persian Socialist Soviet Republic The Persian Socialist Soviet Republic ( fa, ), also known as the Soviet Republic of Iran or Socialist Soviet Republic of Gilan, was a short-lived unrecognized state, a Soviet republic in the Iranian province of Gilan that lasted from June 1920 ...

(9 June 1920 – September 1921) *

Galician Soviet Socialist Republic The Galician Soviet Socialist Republic was a short-lived, self-declared Bolshevik political entity that existed from 15 July to formally 21 September 1920 with the capital in the city of Tarnopol. The communist state was established during a suc ...

(8 July 1920 – 21 September 1920) *

Labin Republic The Labin Republic ( hr, Labinska republika) was a short-lived self-governing republic that was proclaimed by miners from the Istrian city of Labin on March 2, 1921 during a mining strike. It was created in what has been described as the world' ...

(2 March 1921 – 8 April 1921) * Hunan Soviet (September 1927 – October 1927) * Guangzhou Commune (Guangzhou Soviet) (11 December 1927 – 13 December 1927) * Soviet Zone (1927–1937) *

Korean People's Association in Manchuria The Korean People's Association in Manchuria (KPAM, August 1929 – September 1931) was an autonomous anarchist zone in Manchuria near the Korean borderlands, populated by two million Korean migrants. The society was constructed upon princip ...

(1929–1931) * Nghệ-Tĩnh Soviet (1930–1931) *

Jiangxi–Fujian Soviet The Central Revolutionary Base, commonly called the Central Soviet (Zone), the Kiangsi–Fukien Soviet, or the Jiangxi–Fujian Soviet, was the largest component territory of the Chinese Soviet Republic, an unrecognized state established in N ...

(1931–1934) * (7 November 1931 – 22 September 1937) *

Socialist Republic of Chile The Socialist Republic of Chile ( es, República Socialista de Chile) was a short-lived (4 June 1932 – 13 September 1932) political entity in Chile, that was proclaimed by the Government Junta that took over that year. Background In July, 1 ...

(4 June 1932 – 2 October 1932) *

People's Revolutionary Government of the Republic of China The Fujian People's Government (or spelled as the Fukien People's Government) is the common name for the People's Revolutionary Government of the Republic of China (1933–1934) (), also known as the Fujian People's Government (), was a s ...

(22 November 1933 – 13 January 1934) * Xinjiang Clique (1934–1941) * Asturian Socialist Republic (October 1934) *

Regional Defence Council of Aragon The Regional Defence Council of Aragon ( es, Consejo Regional de Defensa de Aragón (CRDA), an, Consello Rechional d'Esfensa d'Aragón), was an administrative entity created by the Confederación Nacional del Trabajo (CNT) in the context of the ...

(1936–1937) * Anarchist Aragon (1936–1939) * Revolutionary Catalonia (1936–1939) *

Shaan-Gan-Ning Border Region Shaan–Gan–Ning or in postal romanization Shen–Kan–Ning () was a historical proto-state that was formed in 1937 by the Chinese Communist Party following the collapse of the Chinese Soviet Republic in agreement with the Kuomintang as a part ...

(1937–1946) *

Finnish Democratic Republic The Finnish Democratic Republic ( fi, Suomen kansanvaltainen tasavalta or ''Suomen kansantasavalta'', sv, Demokratiska Republiken Finland, Russian: ''Финляндская Демократическая Республика''), also known as t ...

(December 1939 – March 1940) *

Political Committee of National Liberation The Political Committee of National Liberation ( el, Πολιτική Επιτροπή Εθνικής Απελευθέρωσης, ''Politiki Epitropi Ethnikis Apeleftherosis'', PEEA), commonly known as the "Mountain Government" ( el, Κυβέρ ...

(10 March 1944 – 9 October 1944) *

Inner Mongolian People's Republic The Inner Mongolian People's Republic was a state in Inner Mongolia founded shortly after the Second World War. It existed from 9 September 1945 until 6 November 1945. History During the Second Sino-Japanese War, the Japanese established a pu ...

(9 September 1945 – 6 November 1945) *

People's Republic of Korea The People's Republic of Korea (PRK) was a short-lived provisional government that was organized at the time of the Surrender of Japan, surrender of the Empire of Japan at the end of World War II. It was proclaimed on 6 September 1945, as Kore ...

(1945–1946) *

Soviet Civil Administration The Soviet Civil Administration (SCA) was the government of the northern half of Korea from 24 August 1945 to 9 September 1948 though governed concurrently after the setup of the Provisional People's Committee for North Korea in 1946. Even thoug ...

(1945–1949) * Liberated Zone (1946–1949) *

Azerbaijan People's Government The Azerbaijan People's Government ( az, آذربایجان میللی حکومتی - Azərbaycan Milli Hökuməti; fa, حکومت خودمختار آذربایجان) was a short-lived unrecognized secessionist state in northern Iran from Nov ...

(November 1945 – December 1946) *

Republic of Mahabad The Republic of Mahabad or the Republic of Kurdistan ( ku, کۆماری کوردستان / Komara Kurdistanê; fa, جمهوری مهاباد) was a short-lived Kurdish self-governing unrecognized state in present-day Iran, from 22 January to ...

(22 January 1946 – 15 December 1946) * Provisional People's Committee for North Korea (1946–1947) * People's Committee of North Korea (1947–1948) * Provisional Democratic Government of North Greece (1947–1949) *

Marquetalia Republic "Marquetalia Republic" was an unofficial term used to refer to one of the enclaves in rural Colombia which communist peasant guerrillas held during the aftermath of "La Violencia" (approximately 1948 to 1958). Congressmen of the Colombian Conse ...

(1948–1964) *

Second East Turkestan Republic The East Turkestan Republic (ETR) was a short-lived satellite state of the Soviet Union in northwest Xinjiang (East Turkestan), between November 12, 1944, and December 22, 1949. To differentiate it from the First East Turkestan Republic (193 ...

(12 November 1949 – 20 December 1949) *

People's Republic of Zanzibar and Pemba The People's Republic of Zanzibar () was an African state founded in 1964, consisting of the islands of the Zanzibar Archipelago. It existed for less than a year before it merged with Tanganyika to create the United Republic of Tanganyika and Za ...

(1964) * Republic of South Vietnam (8 June 1969 – 2 June 1976) * People's Provisional Government of Vanuatu (1977–1978) * People's Revolutionary Republic of Guinea (1979–1984) *

Junta of National Reconstruction The Junta of National Reconstruction (''Junta de Gobierno de Reconstrucción Nacional'') was the provisional government of Nicaragua from the fall of the Somoza dictatorship in July 1979 until January 1985, with the election of Sandinista Nat ...

(18 July 1979 – 10 January 1985) * National Revolutionary Council of Gambia (30 July 1981 – 5 August 1981) *

Coalition Government of Democratic Kampuchea The Coalition Government of Democratic Kampuchea (CGDK; km, រដ្ឋាភិបាលចំរុះកម្ពុជាប្រជាធិបតេយ្យ, ''Roathaphibal Chamroh Kampuchea Pracheathipatai''), renamed in 1990 to the N ...

(22 June 1982 – 24 September 1993) * National Council for the Revolution (1984–1987) *

Republic of Kuwait The Republic of Kuwait was a short-lived and self-styled republic formed in the aftermath of the invasion of Kuwait by Ba'athist Iraq during the early stages of the Gulf War. During the invasion, the Iraqi Revolutionary Command Council stated t ...

(4 August 1990 – 28 August 1990) *

Democratic Republic of Yemen The Democratic Republic of Yemen ( '), colloquially known as South Yemen, was a breakaway state that fought against Yemen Arab Republic in the 1994 Yemeni Civil War. It was declared in May 1994 and covered all of the former South Yemen. The ...

(21 May 1994 – 7 July 1994) * Provisional Government of National Union and National Salvation of Cambodia (11 July 1994 – 22 June 1998)

States with governing communist or socialist parties

There are multiple states with

communist Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, ...

socialist parties Socialist Party is the name of many different political parties around the world. All of these parties claim to uphold some form of socialism, though they may have very different interpretations of what "socialism" means. Statistically, most of th ...

leading the government, sometimes together. Such states are not considered to be communist or socialist states because the countries themselves do not provide a constitutional role for their ruling socialist/communist parties or deem socialism a state ideology. This does not include socialist parties following

social democracy Social democracy is a political, social, and economic philosophy within socialism that supports political and economic democracy. As a policy regime, it is described by academics as advocating economic and social interventions to promote s ...

which governed most of the

Western world The Western world, also known as the West, primarily refers to the various nations and states in the regions of Europe, North America, and Oceania.

as part of the mainstream

and refers to

parties positioned to their left. Examples of previous direct communist or socialist party rule in non-socialist multi-party democracies and constitutionally socialist states include: *

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...

(

Australian Labor Party The Australian Labor Party (ALP), also simply known as Labor, is the major centre-left political party in Australia, one of two major parties in Australian politics, along with the centre-right Liberal Party of Australia. The party forms t ...

, 1899) * Republic of San Marino (

Sammarinese Communist Party The Sammarinese Communist Party ( it, Partito Comunista Sammarinese, abbreviated PCS) was a Marxist political party in the small European republic of San Marino. It was founded in 1921 as a section of the Communist Party of Italy (PCI). The organ ...

, 1945–1957) *

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Gui ...

(

Socialist Party Socialist Party is the name of many different political parties around the world. All of these parties claim to uphold some form of socialism, though they may have very different interpretations of what "socialism" means. Statistically, most of ...

, 1945–1948) *

Union of Burma Union commonly refers to: * Trade union, an organization of workers * Union (set theory), in mathematics, a fundamental operation on sets Union may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * Union (band), an American rock group ** ''Un ...

(

Anti-Fascist People's Freedom League The Anti-Fascist People's Freedom League (AFPFL), ; abbreviated , ''hpa hsa pa la'' was the dominant political alliance in Burma from 1945 to 1958. It consisted of political parties and mass and class organizations. The league evolved out of ...

, 1948–1962) *

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

( Mapai Socialist Party, 1948–1977) *

Republic of India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area, the List of countries and dependencies by population, second-most populous ...

(

Indian National Congress The Indian National Congress (INC), colloquially the Congress Party but often simply the Congress, is a political party in India with widespread roots. Founded in 1885, it was the first modern nationalist movement to emerge in the British E ...

, 1951–1977; 1980–1989; 1991–1996; 2004–2014) * Republic of Uganda ( Uganda People's Congress, 1960–1971; 1980–1985) *

Islamic Republic of Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

(

Pakistan Peoples Party The Pakistan People's Party ( ur, , ; PPP) is a centre-left, social-democratic political party in Pakistan. It is currently the third largest party in the National Assembly and second largest in the Senate of Pakistan. The party was founded i ...

, 1970–1977; 1988–1990; 1993–1996; 2008–2013) *

Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste East Timor (), also known as Timor-Leste (), officially the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste, is an island country in Southeast Asia. It comprises the eastern half of the island of Timor, the exclave of Oecusse on the island's north-wester ...

(

Revolutionary Front for an Independent East Timor The Revolutionary Front for an Independent East Timor ( pt, Frente Revolucionária de Timor-Leste Independente, abbreviated as Fretilin) is a centre-left political party in East Timor. They presently hold 23 of 65 seats in the National Parlia ...

, 1975; 2002–2006; 2007; 2015–2018) *

Republic of Senegal Senegal,; Wolof: ''Senegaal''; Pulaar: 𞤅𞤫𞤲𞤫𞤺𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭 (Senegaali); Arabic: السنغال ''As-Sinighal'') officially the Republic of Senegal,; Wolof: ''Réewum Senegaal''; Pulaar : 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 ...

(

Socialist Party of Senegal The Socialist Party of Senegal (french: Parti Socialiste du Sénégal, PS) is a political party in Senegal. It was the ruling party in Senegal from independence in 1960 until 2000. In the 2000 presidential election, the party's candidate and pr ...

, 1975–2000) *

Arab Republic of Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning the North Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via a land bridg ...

( National Democratic Party, 1978–2011) *

Republic of Vanuatu Vanuatu ( or ; ), officially the Republic of Vanuatu (french: link=no, République de Vanuatu; bi, Ripablik blong Vanuatu), is an island country located in the South Pacific Ocean. The archipelago, which is of volcanic origin, is east of n ...

( Vanua'aku Pati, 1980–1994; 2009–2014) * Republic of Nicaragua (

Sandinista National Liberation Front The Sandinista National Liberation Front ( es, Frente Sandinista de Liberación Nacional, FSLN) is a socialist political party in Nicaragua. Its members are called Sandinistas () in both English and Spanish. The party is named after Augusto ...

, 1984–1990) * People's Democratic Republic of Burkina Faso (

Organization for Popular Democracy – Labour Movement Organization for Popular Democracy – Labour Movement (french: Organisation pour la Démocratie Populaire - Mouvement du Travail) was the ruling political party in Burkina Faso. It was founded in April 1989 by the Union of Burkinabè Communists, ...

and

Congress for Democracy and Progress The Congress for Democracy and Progress (french: Congrès pour la Démocratie et le Progrès, ''CDP'') was the ruling party in Burkina Faso from 1996 until the overthrow of Blaise Compaoré in 2014. History The party was founded in February 199 ...

, 1987–1996; 1996–2014) *

Republic of Tunisia ) , image_map = Tunisia location (orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = Location of Tunisia in northern Africa , image_map2 = , capital = Tunis , largest_city = capital , ...

(

Democratic Constitutional Rally The Democratic Constitutional Rally or Democratic Constitutional Assembly ( ar, التجمع الدستوري الديمقراطي ', french: Rassemblement Constitutionnel Démocratique, sometimes also called Constitutional Democratic Rally in E ...

, 1988–2011, Nidaa Tounes 2014–2019) *

Union of Soviet Socialist Republics The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

(

Communist Party of the Soviet Union " Hymn of the Bolshevik Party" , headquarters = 4 Staraya Square, Moscow , general_secretary = Vladimir Lenin (first) Mikhail Gorbachev (last) , founded = , banned = , founder = Vladimir Lenin , newspape ...

, 1990–1991) *

Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the ...

( Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front, 1991–2019) * Republic of Seychelles (

Seychelles People's Progressive Front United Seychelles is a political party in Seychelles. It publishes a newspaper called ''The People''. It was known as the Seychelles People's Progressive Front (french: Front Progressiste du Peuple Seychellois) until June 2009, when it changed i ...

, People's Party and United Seychelles, 1991–2009; 2009–2018; 2018–2020) *

Republic of Mali Mali (; ), officially the Republic of Mali,, , ff, 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞥆𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 𞤃𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭, Renndaandi Maali, italics=no, ar, جمهورية مالي, Jumhūriyyāt Mālī is a landlocked country in West Africa. Mali ...

(

Alliance for Democracy in Mali The Alliance for Democracy in Mali – African Party for Solidarity and Justice (french: Alliance pour la démocratie au Mali – Parti africain pour la solidarité et la justice, ADEMA-PASJ) is a political party in Mali. On October 25, 1990, oppo ...

and

Rally for Mali The Rally for Mali ( French: ''Rassemblement pour le Mali'') is a Malian political party created by Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta (a former president of Mali) in June 2001. In 2013, Keita was elected President of Mali following several unsuccessful at ...

, 1992–2002; 2012–2013; 2013–2020) * (

Socialist Party of Serbia The Socialist Party of Serbia ( sr, Социјалистичка партија Србије, Socijalistička partija Srbije, SPS) is a political party in Serbia. It is led by Ivica Dačić. It was founded in 1990 as the direct successor to ...

, 1992–2000) *

Co-operative Republic of Guyana Guyana ( or ), officially the Cooperative Republic of Guyana, is a country on the northern mainland of South America. Guyana is an indigenous word which means "Land of Many Waters". The capital city is Georgetown. Guyana is bordered by the ...

( People's Progressive Party, 1992–2015) * Republic of Nepal (

Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist–Leninist) The Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist–Leninist) (; abbr. CPN (UML)) is the largest political party in Nepal on the basis of memberships. As per the results of recent elections, ''CPN (UML)'' stands as the second largest party of Nepal ...

Unified Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) The Unified Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist Centre), abbreviated UCPN (Maoist), (Nepali: एकीकृत नेपाल कम्युनिष्ट पार्टी (माओवादी)), was a political party in Nepal. It was founded ...

and

Nepal Communist Party The Nepal Communist Party, abbreviated NCP ( ne, नेपाल कम्युनिष्ट पार्टी, ) is a defunct communist party of Nepal. It was founded on 17 May 2018, from the unification of two leftist parties, Communist ...

, 1994–1998; 2008–2013; 2015–2017) *

Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

(

Sri Lanka Freedom Party The Sri Lanka Freedom Party ( si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා නිදහස් පක්ෂය, translit=Śrī Laṁkā Nidahas Pakṣaya; ta, இலங்கை சுதந்திரக் கட்சி, translit=Ilaṅkai Cutantirak Ka� ...

, 1994–2001; 2004–2015) *

Republic of Madagascar Madagascar (; mg, Madagasikara, ), officially the Republic of Madagascar ( mg, Repoblikan'i Madagasikara, links=no, ; french: République de Madagascar), is an island country in the Indian Ocean, approximately off the coast of East Africa ...

(

Association for the Rebirth of Madagascar The Malagasy Revolutionary Party, better known by its Malagasy acronym AREMA (from ), is a political party in Madagascar. It was the ruling party of the Democratic Republic of Madagascar, a Marxist–Leninist one-party socialist state, from 1 ...

, 1997–2002) *

Russian Federation Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...

(

Communist Party of the Russian Federation The Communist Party of the Russian Federation (CPRF; russian: Коммунистическая Партия Российской Федерации; КПРФ, Kommunisticheskaya Partiya Rossiyskoy Federatsii; KPRF) is a left-wing nationalist and ...

, 1998–1999) *

Republic of Moldova A republic () is a " state in which power rests with the people or their representatives; specifically a state without a monarchy" and also a "government, or system of government, of such a state." Previously, especially in the 17th and 18th ...

( Party of Communists of the Republic of Moldova, 2001–2009) *

Federative Republic of Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area an ...

( Workers' Party, 2002–2016) *

Oriental Republic of Uruguay Uruguay (; ), officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay ( es, República Oriental del Uruguay), is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast; while bordering ...

( Socialist Party of Uruguay, 2005–2010; 2015–2020 and

Movement of Popular Participation The Movement of Popular Participation ( es, Movimiento de Participación Popular) is a Uruguayan political party. It is a member organisation of the left-wing Broad Front coalition. Background From 1985 onwards, after the end of the military d ...

2010–2015) *

Republic of Sierra Leone Sierra Leone,)]. officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country on the southwest coast of West Africa. It is bordered by Liberia to the southeast and Guinea surrounds the northern half of the nation. Covering a total area of , Sierra ...

(

All People's Congress The All People's Congress (APC) is one of the two major political parties in Sierra Leone, the other being its main political rival the Sierra Leone People's Party (SLPP). The APC has been the main opposition party in Sierra Leone since 4 Ap ...

, 2007–2018) *

Republic of Cyprus Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is ge ...

(

Progressive Party of Working People The Progressive Party of Working People ( el, Ανορθωτικό Κόμμα Εργαζόμενου Λαού, ; abbr. , AKEL; tr, Emekçi Halkın İlerici Partisi) is a Marxist–LeninistHelena Smith, Cyprus gets ready for a communist 'takeove ...

, 2008–2013) *

Republic of El Salvador El Salvador (; , meaning " The Saviour"), officially the Republic of El Salvador ( es, República de El Salvador), is a country in Central America. It is bordered on the northeast by Honduras, on the northwest by Guatemala, and on the south by ...

(

Farabundo Martí National Liberation Front The Farabundo Martí National Liberation Front ( es, Frente Farabundo Martí para la Liberación Nacional, FMLN) is a left-wing political party in El Salvador. The FMLN was formed as an umbrella group on 10 October 1980, from five leftist gu ...

, 2009–2019) *

Republic of Suriname Suriname (; srn, Sranankondre or ), officially the Republic of Suriname ( nl, Republiek Suriname , srn, Ripolik fu Sranan), is a country on the northeastern Atlantic coast of South America. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the nort ...

( National Democratic Party, 2010–2020)

Notes

References

{{Communist states Communist states

Socialist Socialism is a left-wing economic philosophy and movement encompassing a range of economic systems characterized by the dominance of social ownership of the means of production as opposed to private ownership. As a term, it describes the ...

States States *