National PoliticsPolitics

Latvian Elections: All You Need To Know

On 6th October, Latvian citizens will be called to vote in the parliamentary elections, taking place near the centenary of Latvia’s independence. When casting their vote, Latvians will elect 100 representatives to the republic’s unicameral parliament, the Saeima, through proportional representation from five constituencies.
The Saeima is the primary lawmaking institution in Latvia and responsible for electing both the prime minister and the president of the republic, with the two sharing executive powers.

Saeima, the parliament of the Republic of Latvia
Saeima, the parliament of the Republic of Latvia

Current polls show the social democratic party Harmony being confirmed as the most popular parliamentary faction ahead of the incumbent Union of Greens and Farmers and a joint list of liberal parties, although populists have also made gains. There is a 5% threshold to enter Parliament.

MAIN PARTIES

1 – Harmony

Social Democratic Party "Harmony"
Social Democratic Party “Harmony”

Harmony is a social democratic party born from the merger of centrist and center-left parties, as well as defectors from Latvia’s Social Democratic Workers’ Party. Harmony currently has the largest single parliamentary group with twenty seats out of 100, making it the effective leader of the opposition. While economically center-left, the party is socially conservative, in line with its voter base, although it has recently expressed support for a recognition of legal rights for same-sex couples. Additionally, Harmony seeks to represent the Latvian Russian-speaking minority.

Internationally, Harmony has voted against sanctions on Russia over Crimea. While in favour of continued EU and NATO membership, Harmony seeks to reduce defense spending nd has advocated for an improvement in ties with the Kremlin.

2 – The Union of Greens and Farmers

The Union of Greens and Farmers
The Union of Greens and Farmers

The Union of Greens and Farmers is the leader of the current government coalition, which also includes the liberal-conservative party Unity and the right wing National Alliance. The Union is ideologically Green-Conservative and its de facto leader and financial backer is Latvian oligarch Aivars Lembergs, who is facing a long-standing investigation over bribery and money-laundering.

The Union’s electoral pledge centers on the reduction of public administrative staff, to be balanced with an increase in public spending in the form of family benefits related to child support. The Union is explicitly against LGBT rights, much like its 2014 coalition party National Alliance, and has declared any cooperation with Harmony and other Russian-friendly parties as a red line. In terms of foreign policy, they champion a continued Latvian alignment with the European Union and NATO.

3 – Who Owns The State?

Who owns the state?
Who owns the state?

This party, abbreviated in Latvian as KPV, is an anti-establishment and catch all party led and founded by former actor and radio host Artuss Kaimiņš. The KPV is poised for big gains in the coming elections, and while their anti establishment stance seeks to mobilise voters from all political walks of life, some of their talking points have recently grown in specificity.

KPV wants to scrap Latvian ministries, replacing them with a system of secretariats answering directly to the Cabinet in order to centralise the allocation of government funding. Their tax policy would see reduced burdens for small taxpayers and pensioners, while shedding VAT and real estate tax. In Latvia’s strictly conservative political environment, the KPV have pledged to hold a referendum on same sex marriage and abide by the result, not casting their support for either of the positions.
The party takes a strong anti immigration stance and seeks further EU cooperation in protecting the Union’s external border.

POLLS

Forecasts see Harmony being confirmed as the most popular party in Latvia, if with lower ratings than 2014, polling at just above 17%. The Union of Greens and Farmers is a distant second below 10%, followed by the KPV. The latter have experienced a recent surge in support as voters turn their back on more established options.
This is particularly stark in the case of the liberal, pro-European New Unity, a joint list comprising several smaller entities as well as the old Unity party, a dominant faction in Latvian politics for many years. New Unity is currently polling at below 4%, under the threshold needed to enter parliament.
The right wing National Alliance, an established and vocally anti-Russian and anti-immigration party championing the cause of Latvian ethno-nationalism, is also making gains: the party ranks at 7%.

It is unclear how Latvian political parties will deal with what is likely to be a very fragmented parliament, especially considering the isolation of Harmony from the vast majority of the political spectrum.

Did you enjoy this article? You may also like The Next Enlargement Wave: Albania Off To A Rocky Start or Lost in Europe – Warsaw
Tags

Tullio Pontecorvo

Student of political science and international relations, co-founder of My Country? Europe. Aspiring sci-fi author. Believes shooting aliens in the face to be the ultimate form of gaming.

Related Articles

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Back to top button
Close
Close