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A referendum on whether the Saeima should be dissolved early was held in Latvia on 23 July 2011. [1] President Valdis Zatlers used his parliamentary dissolution power for the first time in the history of Latvia. [2] A "yes/no" vote was held and the referendum passed with 94.3% support.
President Valdis Zatlers called the referendum under the power given to him by the constitution on 28 May 2011. [2] Zatlers called the referendum in response to the Saeima's refusal to sanction a search at the home of MP Ainārs Šlesers, leader of Latvia's First Party/Latvian Way and a former cabinet minister. [3] According to the current legal procedure, the referendum on the Saeima's dissolution had to take place no later than two months after the President's decree. [4]
The Constitution of Latvia foresaw that if the people had not supported Zatlers' decision, he would have had to resign from the presidency. This could have created a judicial conundrum, however, since Zatlers' current term expired on 7 July and the Saeima held a presidential election (in which Zatlers was also a candidate) on 2 June. [5] As Zatlers was not reelected, however, this conundrum was avoided.
Polls indicated that the referendum would pass by a strong margin.
| Choice | Votes | % |
|---|---|---|
 Yes | 650,518 | 94.30 |
| No | 37,829 | 5.48 |
| Invalid or blank votes | 1,476 | 0.21 |
| Total votes | 689,823 | 100.00 |
| Registered voters/turnout | 1,542,593 | 44.73 |
| Source: CVK | ||
| Referendum results (excluding invalid votes) | |
|---|---|
| Yes 650,518 (94.5%) | |
| ▲ 50% | |
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