Joseph Stalin came to power in 1924 after Lenin's death, even though Lenin himself had discouraged him as his successor. Stalin's regime was characterized by economic stagnation, political repression, human rights abuses, and competing nationalities. Despite these various problems, Stalin managed to sustain the Soviet Union and transform it into a dominant world power. His ability to maintain power and stability was the result of promoting social, economic, cultural, and political systems that increased Russian patriotism and unified various nationalities. Lenin's death in 1924 left uncertainty as to who should become the next leader. Lenin had discussed within his inner circle and mentioned Stalin and Trotsky as possible candidates, but stated that Stalin should not succeed him because he was rude. Only Lenin's inner circle knew about these feelings. From the beginning Stalin was placed in opposition to Trotsky. After Stalin came to power in 1924, an opposition formed involving Trotsky, Zinoviev and Kamenev. This united opposition called for local control and autonomy, as well as open debate within the party. The opposition had a centrist position in politics that aligned with the communist party. Lenin's previous position. Bukharin was another opponent of Stalin: he represented the right and called for the continuation of the NEP policy. Stalin opposed his position by calling for rapid industrialization. In 1926 Zinoviev, Trotsky and Kamenev were removed from the Politburo because Stalin saw them as a threat. On July 11, 1928 there was an exchange between Kamenev and Bukharin in this communication they expressed the need for Stalin to be overthrown because he is manipulating ideology to support his positions. (Suny 2003)...... middle of the paper.. ....ect the homeland. Throughout the period in which Stalin was able to maintain power thanks to social realism, this made it acceptable to live in terrible economic conditions for many years because it was part of a path to a better life and a better Soviet Union. Works Cited Fitzpatrick, Sheila and Yuri Slezkine. "NI Slavnikova et al. "Speech of the Stakhanovites"" In the Shadow of the Revolution: Life Stories of Russian Women from 1917 to World War II. Princeton, NJ: Princeton UP, 2000. 331-41. Print."From autocracy to oligarchy." The structure of Soviet history: essays and documents. Ed. Ronald Grigor. Sun. New York: Oxford UP, 2003. 340-50. Press."International seminar 'Stalin Today'" Magazine of revolutionary democracy. Np, 1994. Web. 12 December 2013. .A. Solzhenitsyn, excerpt from Gulag Archipelago. 1973