The Estonian Centre Party is a populist political party in Estonia. It was founded in 1991 as a direct successor of the Popular Front of Estonia,and it is currently led by Mihhail Kõlvart.
The Estonian Reform Party is a liberal political party in Estonia. The party has been led by Kaja Kallas since 2018. It is colloquially known as the "Squirrel Party",referencing its logo.
Edgar Savisaar was an Estonian politician,one of the founding members of Popular Front of Estonia and the Centre Party. He served as the acting Prime Minister of Estonia,Minister of the Interior,Minister of Economic Affairs and Communications,and twice mayor of Tallinn.
The Social Democratic Party is a centre-left political party in Estonia. It is currently led by Lauri Läänemets. The party was formerly known as the Moderate People's Party. The SDE has been a member of the Party of European Socialists since 16 May 2003 and was a member of the Socialist International from November 1990 to 2017. It is orientated towards the principles of social-democracy,and it supports Estonia's membership in the European Union. From April 2023,the party has been a junior coalition partner in the third Kallas government.
Same-sex marriage has been legal in Estonia since 1 January 2024. The government elected in the March 2023 election,led by Prime Minister Kaja Kallas and consisting of the Reform Party,the Social Democrats and Estonia 200,vowed to legalize same-sex marriage. Legislation to open marriage to same-sex couples was introduced to the Riigikogu in May 2023,and was approved in a final reading by 55 votes to 34 on 20 June. It was signed into law by President Alar Karis on 27 June,and took effect on 1 January 2024. Estonia was the first Baltic state,the first post-Soviet state,the twentieth country in Europe,and the 35th in the world to legalise same-sex marriage.
Jüri Ratas is an Estonian politician who served as the prime minister of Estonia from 2016 to 2021 and as the leader of the Centre Party from 2016 to 2023,and the mayor of Tallinn from 2005 to 2007. Ratas was a member of the Centre Party until switching to Isamaa in 2024.
Isamaa is a Christian-democratic and national-conservative political party in Estonia.
The Ministry of the Interior of Estonia is a Ministry in the Estonian Government. The current Minister of the Interior is Lauri Läänemets.
Hanno Pevkur is an Estonian politician who is currently the Minister of Defence. He is the former chairman of the Estonian Reform Party.
Urmas Reinsalu is an Estonian politician who served as Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2022 to 2023 and previously from 2019 to 2021. Before that,Urmas has served as the Minister of Defence between 2012 and 2014,and Minister of Justice from 2015 to 2019. Reinsalu is a member and current leader of the Isamaa ("Fatherland") political party,and was the party leader from 2012 to 2015.
Mart Helme is an Estonian politician,diplomat and historian who served as the Minister of the Interior from 2019 to 2020. He was the longtime chairman of the national conservative Conservative People's Party of Estonia (EKRE) from 13 April 2013 to 4 July 2020 when he was succeeded by his son Martin Helme.
Kaja Kallas is an Estonian politician and diplomat. She was the first female prime minister of Estonia,a role she held from 2021 until 2024,when she resigned in advance of her appointment as High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy. The leader of the Estonian Reform Party since 2018,she was a member of parliament (Riigikogu) in 2011–2014,and 2019–2021. Kallas was a member of the European Parliament in 2014–2018,representing the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe. Before her election to Riigikogu,she was a lawyer specialising in European competition law.
Jüri Ratas's cabinet was the 49th cabinet of Estonia,in office from 23 November 2016 to 29 April 2019. It was a centre-left coalition cabinet of Centre Party,Social Democratic Party and conservative Pro Patria and Res Publica Union. It was preceded by the Second Cabinet of Taavi Rõivas,a cabinet that ended when Social Democrats and the Union of Pro Patria and Res Publica joined the opposition's no confidence vote against the cabinet. This was the first time since 1999 the liberal centre-right Reform Party were out of the government.
The Kaitseväe orkester,known in Anglophone countries as the Band of the Estonian Defence Forces,is the official military band service of the Estonian Defence Forces. The main task of the band is to play music at all national and military ceremonies. The band's repertoire includes mostly classical and marching music. It is currently made up of 40 musicians. From 1996 to 2019,the conductor of the band was Lieutenant Colonel Peeter Saan. Each year,the band takes part in about 220 concerts,festivals,and ceremonial parades of the Defence Forces. It has also performed at venues abroad in countries like Lithuania,France and Germany. Traditionally,the band holds Autumn and Spring concerts in the Estonia Concert Hall.
Jüri Ratas's second cabinet was the 50th cabinet of Estonia,in office from 29 April 2019 to 14 January 2021. It was a centre-right coalition cabinet of the Centre Party,right-wing populist Conservative People's Party (EKRE) and conservative Isamaa.
Eva-Maria Liimets is an Estonian politician. She served as the Minister of Foreign Affairs in the cabinet of Prime Minister Kaja Kallas. She was nominated by the Estonian Centre Party as an independent in January 2021 and officially joined the party on 9 June 2021. Along with all seven cabinet ministers of the governing coalition’s junior partner,she was dismissed on 3 June 2022.
Alar Laneman is an Estonian politician.
Alar Karis is an Estonian molecular geneticist,developmental biologist,civil servant and politician who,since 11 October 2021,has served as the sixth president of Estonia.
Kaja Kallas's first cabinet was the Cabinet of Estonia between 26 January 2021 and 14 July 2022. It was a grand coalition cabinet of the Reform Party and the Centre Party until 3 June 2022 when Kallas dismissed Centre Party ministers from government after several weeks of disputes between the two parties.
The 2022 Estonian government crisis was a political event in Estonia that occurred between May and July 2022. It includes the events that follow the introduction of a child benefits bill by the governing Centre Party with the support of the opposition Isamaa,Social Democrats and EKRE but without the support of the senior partner in the coalition,the Reform Party.
