This article is part of a series on the politics and government of Latvia |
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Foreign relations |
Parliamentary elections were held in Latvia on 3 October 1998. [1] The People's Party emerged as the largest party in the Saeima, winning 24 of the 100 seats.
Latvia, officially the Republic of Latvia, is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. Since its independence, Latvia has been referred to as one of the Baltic states. It is bordered by Estonia to the north, Lithuania to the south, Russia to the east, and Belarus to the southeast, and shares a maritime border with Sweden to the west. Latvia has 1,957,200 inhabitants and a territory of 64,589 km2 (24,938 sq mi). The country has a temperate seasonal climate.
The People's Party was a conservative political party in Latvia. The People's Party was the leader of three governments and a member of another four.
The Saeima is the parliament of the Republic of Latvia. It is a unicameral parliament consisting of 100 members who are elected by proportional representation, with seats allocated to political parties which gain at least 5% of the popular vote. Elections are scheduled to be held once every four years, normally on the first Saturday of October. The most recent elections were held in October 2018.
Party | Votes | % | Seats | +/– |
---|---|---|---|---|
People's Party | 203,585 | 21.3 | 24 | New |
Latvian Way | 173,420 | 18.1 | 21 | +4 |
For Fatherland and Freedom/LNNK | 140,773 | 14.7 | 17 | +3 |
National Harmony Party | 135,700 | 14.2 | 16 | +10 |
Latvian Social Democratic Alliance | 123,056 | 12.9 | 14 | +14 |
New Party | 70,214 | 7.3 | 8 | New |
Latvian Farmers' Union | 23,732 | 2.5 | 0 | – |
Workers' Party-LKDS-ZP | 22,018 | 2.3 | 0 | – |
People's Movement for Latvia | 16,647 | 1.7 | 0 | –16 |
Democratic Party "Saimnieks" | 15,410 | 1.6 | 0 | –18 |
Latvian Revival Party | 5,000 | 0.5 | 0 | New |
National Progress Party | 4,522 | 0.5 | 0 | New |
Latvian Unity Party | 4,445 | 0.5 | 0 | –8 |
Social Democratic Women's Organisation | 3,133 | 0.3 | 0 | New |
Popular Movement "Freedom" | 3,099 | 0.3 | 0 | New |
Latvian National Democratic Party | 2,927 | 0.3 | 0 | 0 |
Conservative Party | 2,318 | 0.2 | 0 | New |
Citizens' Union "Our Land" | 2,238 | 0.2 | 0 | New |
Helsinki-86 | 2,088 | 0.2 | 0 | New |
Democrats' Party | 792 | 0.1 | 0 | 0 |
Latvian National Reform Party | 464 | 0.1 | 0 | New |
Invalid/blank votes | 26,819 | – | – | – |
Total | 982,400 | 100 | 100 | 0 |
Registered voters/turnout | 1,383,661 | 71.0 | – | – |
Source: Nohlen & Stöver |
Initially, a coalition government was formed between Latvian Way, For Fatherland and Freedom, the Social Democratic Alliance and the New Party. This enjoyed a parliamentary majority with 60 out of the 100 MPs. However, within six months of the coalition forming, the Social Democratic Alliance left the government, leaving it with just 46 MPs, wiping out its parliamentary majority. As a result, a new government was formed with the addition of the People's Party. This enjoyed a large parliamentary majority, with 70 out of the 100 MPs.
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