League of Communists of Yugoslavia

The founding and ruling party of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. It was formed in 1919 as the main communist opposition party in the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes and after its initial successes in the elections, it was proscribed by the royal government and was at times harshly and violently suppressed. It remained an illegal underground group until World War II when, after the invasion of Yugoslavia in 1941, the military arm of the party, the Yugoslav Partisans, became involved in a bloody civil war and defeated the Axis powers and their local auxiliaries. After the liberation from foreign occupation in 1945, the party consolidated its power and established a one-party state, which existed in that form of government until 1990, a year prior to the start of the Yugoslav Wars and breakup of Yugoslavia.

Led by Josip Broz Tito from 1937 to 1980, it was the first communist party in power to defy the Soviet hegemony in the Eastern Bloc and thus was expelled from the Cominform in 1948 in what is known as the Tito–Stalin split. After internal purges of pro-Soviet members, the party renamed itself the League of Communists in 1952 and adopted the politics of workers' self-management and an independent path to achieving socialism, known as Titoism.

Political Secretary: Filip Filipović (23 April 1919 – 3 June 1921) Živko Topalović (23 April 1919 – 24 June 1920), Sima Marković (24 June 1920 – 3 June 1921), Triša Kaclerović (3 June 1921 – 17 July 1922), Sima Marković (17 July 1922 – 12 May 1923), Triša Kaclerović (12 May 1923 – 22 May 1926), Sima Marković (22 May 1926 – 1 December 1927), Đuro Cvijić (1 December 1927 – 13 April 1928), Jovan Mališić (27 November 1928 – 11 August 1930), Filip Filipović (December 1931 – 2 April 1932), Miloš Marković (2 April 1932 – June 1932), Milan Gorkić (26 December 1934 – 8 December 1936),

President: Pavle Pavlović and Jakov Lastrić (24 June 1920 – 3 June 1921), Milan Gorkić (8 December 1936 – 17 August 1937), Josip Broz Tito (5 January 1939 – 4 May 1980), Stevan Doronjski (4 May 1980 – 20 October 1980), Lazar Mojsov (20 October 1980 – 20 October 1981), Dušan Dragosavac (20 October 1981 – 29 June 1982), Mitja Ribičič (29 June 1982 – 30 June 1983), Dragoslav Marković (30 June 1983 – 26 June 1984), Ali Šukrija (26 June 1984 – 25 June 1985), Vidoje Žarković (25 June 1985 – 28 June 1986), Milanko Renovica (28 June 1986 – 30 June 1987), Boško Krunić (30 June 1987 – 30 June 1988), Stipe Šuvar (30 June 1988 – 17 May 1989), Milan Pančevski (17 May 1989 – 17 May 1990), Miomir Grbović (23 May 1990 – 26 May 1990) Miroslav Ivanović (26 May 1990 – 22 January 1991)