Russia's Constitutional Revolution

Russia's Constitutional Revolution, Volume 1, provides a detailed analysis of constitutionalism within post-communist Russia. This work of political science and law examines the critical relationship between legal culture and the survival of democracy. Robert Ahdieh explores the period from 1985, beginning with Mikhail Gorbachev's appointment as General Secretary, through the adoption of the new Constitution in December 1993.

The text focuses on how the narrow emphasis on institution-building by leaders like Gorbachev and Boris Yeltsin hindered the growth of legal consciousness. Drawing on interviews with government officials and legal practitioners, this history of Russia and the former Soviet Union proposes an alternative model for development. Ahdieh concludes that the emergence of constitutionalism in this European region requires an evolution from below to succeed.