a counter-coup took place and the Ba'ath Party was forced from power, as had been the case in November 1963, the party needed financial security so that it could reclaim power. By Hasim's estimates, the Ba'ath Party had accumulated in external revenues by 1989. Membership When the party came to power in 1968 in the 17 July Revolution, it was determined to increase party membership so that it could compete with ideological opponents such as the Iraqi Communist Party. Saddam had a clear plan, and on 25 February 1976 he said, "It should be our ambition to make all Iraqis in the country Ba'athists in membership and belief or in the latter only." This is contrary to his statements in the 1990s, when increasing membership was more important than recruiting members who adhered to Ba'athist ideology. Like most parties, the Ba'ath membership was organised in a hierarchical manner. The head of a branch, division or section was the secretary-general, who was responsible to the secretariat. At the bottom was sympathiser, a member seeking to climb the party ranks with the status of active members, which could take five to 10 years. In certain provinces, "national activity" was the status given to the lowest level of the hierarchy. Where this level existed, it could take two to three years to climb up to the rank of sympathiser. The report to the 10th National Congress stated that "It is not sufficient for a member just to believe in the idea of the party, but what is required is total commitment and not simply a political affiliation." Electoral history Presidential elections National Assembly elections References Bibliography 1951 establishments in Iraq Arab nationalism in Iraq Banned political parties in Iraq Banned socialist parties Ba'athist parties Iraq Factions in the Iraq War History of the Middle East Iraqi insurgency (2003–2011) Iraqi insurgency (2011–2013) Nationalist parties in Iraq Parties of one-party systems Political history of Iraq Political parties established in 1951 Socialist parties in Iraq War in Iraq (2013–2017) Left-wing nationalist parties