Marxism–Leninism holds that a two-stage communist revolution is needed to replace capitalism. A vanguard party, organized through democratic centralism, would seize power on behalf of the proletariat and establish a one-party communist state. The state would control the means of production, suppress opposition, counter-revolution, and the bourgeoisie, and promote Soviet collectivism, to pave the way for an eventual communist society that would be classless and stateless.

Call me revisionist (“Hi, revisionist!”), but how I’d view the two-stage revolution part is like this:

1. A vanguard party (which would lead a coalition of like-minded socialist parties) becomes the leading party of government through democratic means. If NOT an election, they would take control through revolution. Either way, they’d establish a democratic dictatorship of the proletariat. These parties would be allowed to cooperate like in China, East Germany or the DPRK, as well as to compete like in liberal democratic systems.
2. Instead of using the state to control the means of production, they’d partner with the industrial unions to handle these means. The state would then be downsized in favor of direct democracy and workers’ councils. Meanwhile, the industrial unions would handle production under a market economy. Both the parties and the unions would work together to promote collectivism. The redistribution of wealth is handled through universal basic income and land would be publicized and taxed.

My take on a two-stage revolution is more of a cross between regular Marxism-Leninism, De Leonism, Georgism, libertarian socialism and market socialism. I’d call it “Market Synthesis Socialism”. What do you think?