Nikita Sergeyevich Khrushchev (1894–1971) began his career as a metal worker and later served as a political commissar during the Russian Civil War. He rose through the Soviet hierarchy under the sponsorship of Lazar Kaganovich, actively supporting the Great Purge and approving thousands of arrests during Stalin's rule. In 1938, he was sent to govern the Ukrainian SSR, where he continued the purges.