Latvia - May 2023

The Saeima elected Edgars Rinkēvičs, the candidate put forward by the centre-right New Unity, as President of Latvia. Rinkēvičs was elected in the third round of voting, with 52 votes in favour, and 35 against (surpassing the 51 votes required for a simple majority). Rinkēvičs becomes Latvia’s first openly gay President and was the first prominent political figure in Latvia to come out as gay in 2014. He previously served as Minister of Foreign Affairs and had pushed for Ukraine’s accession to the EU and NATO. The incumbent, President Egils Levits, who was nominated by National Alliance, ultimately decided not to seek a second term and withdrew from the race. It is the second presidential election in which an open ballot system was used, following constitutional reforms passed in 2019, holding MPs accountable for their vote and improving transparency.

Sources: DW, Saeima, Baltic News Network

The Saeima approved electoral amendments to expand the application of the online voting register to European Parliament elections, enabling voters to cast their ballots at any polling station (previously this was only possible at the polling station where the voter is registered). The online voting register was used in the 14th Saeima elections in 2022 and in municipal elections in 2021. The amendments also include provisions designed to improve accessibility, requiring the Central Election Commission to publish party programmes and candidate lists in audio format and to signpost information on wheelchair accessibility of polling stations for voters with disabilities.

Sources: Saeima, Baltic News Network