Otto August Strandman was an Estonian politician, who served as Prime Minister (1919) and State Elder of Estonia (1929–1931). He was one of the leaders of the centre-left Estonian Labour Party, that saw its biggest support after the 1919 and 1920 elections. Strandman was a key figure in composing the radical land reform law and the 1920 Constitution. He also served as Minister of Agriculture (1918–1919), Minister of Justice, Minister of Finance (1924), Minister of Foreign Affairs and Minister of War (1919). While he was in the office of Minister of Finance, he stabilized the economy and managed to avoid hyperinflation. Strandman was also the speaker of both the Estonian Provincial Assembly (1917–1918) and Riigikogu (1921). He was a diplomat, serving as an envoy in Warsaw (1927–1929), when he made contacts with Polish politicians, and in Paris (1933–1939). During the Soviet Occupation in 1941, Strandman was ordered to show up to the NKVD headquarters. Already knowing about his fate, he committed suicide in his home in Kadrina.
The Social Democratic Party is a social-democratic political party in Estonia, currently led by Jevgeni Ossinovski.
The Riigikogu is the unicameral parliament of Estonia. All important state-related questions pass through the Riigikogu. In addition to approving legislation, the Riigikogu appoints high officials, including the Prime Minister and Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, and elects the President. The Riigikogu also ratifies significant foreign treaties that impose military and proprietary obligations, bring about changes in law, etc.; approves the budget presented by the government as law and monitors the executive power.
Jaan Tõnisson was an Estonian statesman, serving as the Prime Minister of Estonia twice during 1919 to 1920, as State Elder from 1927 to 1928 and in 1933, and as Foreign Minister of Estonia from 1931 to 1932.
Riigihoidja was the name of the office of the head of state and head of government of Estonia from 3 September 1937 to 24 April 1938. The only person to hold this position was Konstantin Päts, five time former State Elder. His eventual successor ex officio was Johan Laidoner, then Commander-in-Chief.
Parliamentary elections were held in Estonia between 11 and 13 May 1929.
Parliamentary elections were held in Estonia between 15 and 17 May 1926. Before the elections the electoral law was changed to create more stability by introducing a system of bonds and raising the electoral threshold to require a party to win a minimum of two seats.
Parliamentary elections were held in Estonia between 5 and 7 May 1923. There were some controversies - some lists, most remarkably Communist, were declared void before the elections because of electoral law violations, and the results gave Estonia its most fragmented parliament ever.
Parliamentary elections were held in Estonia between 27 and 29 November 1920, the first held under the 1920 constitution. 100 deputies were elected into the new Riigikogu by party lists in 10 regions, by which one party or electoral bloc could put up several lists in one region. Seats were still distributed on the state level, where votes for different lists were summed up by their political affiliation and then seats distributed using d'Hondt formula. Thereafter seats for one party or bloc were distributed between different lists of that political force using the same formula.
The Estonian Labour Party was a political party in Estonia. It was formed in 1919 by a merger of the Radical Socialist Party and the Social Travaillist Party, and ceased to exist in 1932, when it merged with other centrist parties to form the National Centre Party. It was a member of government coalitions between 1919 and 1925, and again from 1927 until 1931.
The Estonian People's Party was a centre-right political party in Estonia.
The Christian People's Party was a political party in Estonia between 1919 and 1931.
The Landlords' Party, also known as the House Owners' Party, was a political party in Estonia.
The Estonian Socialist Workers' Party was a political party in Estonia.
The National Centre Party was a political party in Estonia.
Vassili Grigorjev was a Russian-Estonian farmer and politician.
