The article reviews the creative path and the main directions of the ideological and theoretical heritage of Alexander Mitrofanovich Kovalev (1923-2010). Kovalev worked for 64 years at the Lomonosov Moscow State University and made a significant contribution to the formation of political science in the USSRand to the training of highly qualified specialists. In 1995, Kovalev was named “Person of the year” by American Biographical Institute. The Cambridge University included him in its directory of “500 intellectuals of the world”. His name is included in the international directory “Who is who in the world” published in the USA (New-York, 1995, 1999). He is the author of more than 350 scientific papers, including 28 monographs. Kovalev was interested in the regularities of social and political development; political theory and practice of social development; political prospects for human development. He studied the influence of social revolutions; dialectics of relations between the state and society; problems of the world political process; class struggle; issues of socialist and communist construction, and others. Kovalev'smulti-faceted work,devoted not only to philosophical, but also to political science issues, allows us to rightfully call him one of the founders of modern Russian political science. The author draws attention to the fact that it is necessary to comprehensive study of the ideological and theoretical heritage of Kovalev.
