1984 Soviet Union legislative election
Supreme Soviet elections were held in the Soviet Union on 4 March 1984. The elections were called on December 16, 1983. The elections were not free and fair, as there was no genuine competition and no meaningful choice for voters to make.
They were the last in the Soviet Union to be held before Mikhail Gorbachev's policies of perestroika and demokratizatsiya resulted in partially free elections in 1989. They were also the last direct elections to the Supreme Soviet, as in 1989 deputies were elected to the Congress of People's Deputies, who then elected the Supreme Soviet.
Electoral system
Candidates had to be nominated by the Communist Party of the Soviet Union or by a public organisation. However, all public organisations were controlled by the party and were subservient to a 1931 law that required them to accept party rule. The CPSU itself remained the only legal one in the country.Voters could vote against the CPSU candidate, but could only do so by using polling booths, whereas votes for the party could be cast simply by submitting a blank ballot. Turnout was required to be over 50% for the election to be valid.