The politics of Latvia takes place in a framework of a parliamentary representative democratic republic,whereby the Prime Minister is the head of government,and of a multi-party system. The President holds a primarily ceremonial role as Head of State. Executive power is exercised by the government. Legislative power is vested in both the government and parliament,the Saeima. The Judiciary is independent of the executive and the legislature. The Economist Intelligence Unit rated Latvia a "flawed democracy" in 2022.
The Latvian Social Democratic Workers' Party is a social-democratic political party in Latvia and the second oldest existing Latvian political party after the Latvian Farmers' Union. It is currently represented with two seats in the parliament of Latvia as a part of the Union of Greens and Farmers alliance after an absence of 20 years. The party tends to hold a less Russophilic view than fellow social-democratic party "Harmony".
The Latvian Green Party is a green political party in Latvia.
The Union of Greens and Farmers is an agrarian political alliance in Latvia. It is made up of the Latvian Farmers' Union,Latvian Social Democratic Workers' Party,and For Latvia and Ventspils.
Aigars Kalvītis is a Latvian businessman and a former politician who was the Prime Minister of Latvia from 2004 to 2007. Currently he is the president of Latvian Ice Hockey Federation and the Chairman of the Board of Latvian gas company Latvijas Gāze. He is the Chairman of the Council of Latvian telecommunications company Tet.
The Latvian Farmers' Union is an agrarian political party in Latvia.
Riga City Council is the government of the city of Riga,the capital of Latvia. Its meeting place is in the Riga Town Hall at the Town Hall Square (Rātslaukums) in the very heart of Riga.
Māris Gailis is a Latvian businessman and former politician. He is the former prime minister of Latvia,an office he held from September 1994 to December 1995. In the government of the Prime Minister Valdis Birkavs,Gailis became a Minister of State Reform;in the government of the Prime Minister Andris Šķēle,he was the Minister of Environmental Protection and Regional Development. As a member of the right-wing liberal political party Latvian Way,he was elected in the 5th Saeima and 6th Saeima. He led a round-the-globe expedition on the yacht Milda from 2001 to 2003.
Ainārs Šlesers is a Latvian business oligarch and politician who was Deputy Prime Minister of Latvia,as well as Deputy Mayor of Riga. Currently he is a member of the Latvian Parliament with his political party,Latvia First,holding 9 seats in the parliament.
Parliamentary elections were held in Latvia on 6 October 2018. Following the elections,a coalition government was formed by Who owns the state?,the New Conservative Party,Development/For!,the National Alliance and New Unity. Despite being from the smallest elected party,Arturs Krišjānis Kariņšof New Unity was chosen as prime minister.
Māris Kučinskis is a Latvian politician,who served as the prime minister of Latvia,from 2016 to 2019.
Andris Bērziņš is a Latvian businessman and politician who was President of Latvia from 2011 to 2015. Bērziņšwas the President of Unibanka from 1993 to 2004. He was elected as President by the Saeima on 2 June 2011.
For Latvia and Ventspils is a regionalist political party in Latvia that mainly operates as a localist party in Ventspils. It is mostly known for its chairman,Aivars Lembergs,who has been mayor of Ventspils between 1988 until his arrest in 2021. In 2006,the party signed an agreement with the Union of Greens and Farmers to allow members of For Latvia and Ventspils to be elected to the Saeima,including the former speaker of the parliament Gundars Daudze,and current members Dana Reizniece-Ozola and Jānis Vucāns. Since then,Lembergs has been named as a candidate for the position of the prime minister many times.
The Liepāja Party is a localist political party in Latvia. It operates in the city of Liepāja,where its chairman,Uldis Sesks,was mayor from 1997 to 2018. The party has an agreement with the Union of Greens and Farmers allowing party members to be elected in the Saeima,including current members Māris Kučinskis,Valdis Skujiņšand Aija Barča.
Jānis Ādamsons is a Latvian politician. He is a member of Harmony and a deputy of the 12th Saeima.
Juris Pūce is a Latvian economist,lawyer,and politician. Former Minister of Environmental Protection and Regional Development of Latvia in the government of Krisjanis Karins and chairman of the board of the "Latvian Development" party. Pūce was elected deputy of 13th Saeima from the "Development / For!". He is former the State Secretary of the Ministry of Economics (2010–2013),a member of the Council of LMT (2009–2012),a member of the Board of the Riga Graduate School of Law (2006–2010),as well as a member of the Riga City Council (2017–2018).
Livonia is one of the five multi-member constituencies of the Saeima,the national legislature of Latvia. The constituency was established in 1922 when the Saeima was established following Latvia's independence from the Soviet Union. It consists of the city of Jūrmala and municipalities of Ādaži,Alūksne,Cēsis,Gulbene,Ķekava,Limbaži,Madona,Mārupe,Ogre,Olaine,Ropaži,Salaspils,Saulkrasti,Sigulda,Smiltene,Valka,Valmiera and Varakļāni in the region of Livonia. The constituency currently elects 26 of the 100 members of the Saeima using the open party-list proportional representation electoral system. At the 2022 parliamentary election it had 396,278 registered electors.
The Evika Siliņa cabinet is the 42nd and current government of Latvia,sworn in on 15 September 2023 after Evika Siliņa was proposed as Prime Minister by President Edgars Rinkēvičs and elected by the Saeima.
Staņislavs Šķesters is a Latvian engineer and politician. He has served as a deputy in the 8th,9th,and 10th Saeimas. Since 2006,he has been the chairman of the Central Land Commission. He represents the political party Latvian Farmers' Union.
Andris Bērziņš is a Latvian philologist,public servant,and politician. He has served as a member of seven convocations of the Saeima,elected to the 14th Saeima. He represents the Latvian Farmers' Union and the Union of Greens and Farmers. Previously,he was involved with the New Party and Latvian Way,as well as the Latvian Farmers' Union. Since 1989,he has been the head of the Latvian Children's Fund.
