John Löwenhardt, born in Almelo, the Netherlands, in 1947. Ph.D. from the University of Amsterdam. Associate Professor of Soviet Law at Leiden University.
Fellow (1 September 1988 – 31 July 1989)
Most of my time was devoted to the mere observation of Political Reform in the USSR, which was changing in at an unprecedented and unexpected pace, both from a distance and from up-close. The analysis of specific aspects of the reform effort, against the background of Soviet political history, resulted in a number of publications, such as Democratisation of party elections in the Soviet Union. Central Committee CPSU Instructions on elections, 1937-1988. During the last months of my stay I started work on the second, revised and updated edition of my book on The Soviet Politburo.