Elections in Latvia
Encyclopedia
Elections in Latvia gives information on election
and election results in Latvia
.
Latvia elects on national level a legislature
. The Saeima
has 100 members, elected for a four year term by proportional representation
with a 5% threshold. An unmodified Sainte-Laguë method
is used to allocate seats. The parliamentary elections are held on the first Saturday of October. Locally, Latvia elects municipal councils, consisting of 7 to 60 members, depending on the size of the municipality, also by proportional representation
for a four year term.
Latvia has a multi-party system, with numerous parties
in which no one party often has a chance of gaining power alone, and parties
must work with each other to form coalition government
s.
• Saeima (parliament): 1993, 1995, 1998, 2002, 2006, 2010
• Local/municipal: 1994, 1997, 2001, 2005, 2009
• Europarliament: 2004 (9 seats), 2009 (8 seats + 1 in case of Lisbon treaty coming into force)
• Referenda: 1998 (citizenship); 1999 (pensions); 2003 (EU); 2007 (national security law); 2008 (pensions)
• Presidential: 1993, 1996, 1999, 2003, 2007
Election
An election is a formal decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual to hold public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy operates since the 17th century. Elections may fill offices in the legislature, sometimes in the...
and election results in Latvia
Politics of Latvia
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...
.
Latvia elects on national level a legislature
Legislature
A legislature is a kind of deliberative assembly with the power to pass, amend, and repeal laws. The law created by a legislature is called legislation or statutory law. In addition to enacting laws, legislatures usually have exclusive authority to raise or lower taxes and adopt the budget and...
. The Saeima
Saeima
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,...
has 100 members, elected for a four year term by proportional representation
Proportional representation
Proportional representation is a concept in voting systems used to elect an assembly or council. PR means that the number of seats won by a party or group of candidates is proportionate to the number of votes received. For example, under a PR voting system if 30% of voters support a particular...
with a 5% threshold. An unmodified Sainte-Laguë method
Sainte-Laguë method
The Sainte-Laguë method is one way of allocating seats approximately proportional to the number of votes of a party to a party list used in many voting systems. It is named after the French mathematician André Sainte-Laguë. The Sainte-Laguë method is quite similar to the D'Hondt method, but uses...
is used to allocate seats. The parliamentary elections are held on the first Saturday of October. Locally, Latvia elects municipal councils, consisting of 7 to 60 members, depending on the size of the municipality, also by proportional representation
Proportional representation
Proportional representation is a concept in voting systems used to elect an assembly or council. PR means that the number of seats won by a party or group of candidates is proportionate to the number of votes received. For example, under a PR voting system if 30% of voters support a particular...
for a four year term.
Latvia has a multi-party system, with numerous parties
Political Parties
Political Parties: A Sociological Study of the Oligarchical Tendencies of Modern Democracy is a book by sociologist Robert Michels, published in 1911 , and first introducing the concept of iron law of oligarchy...
in which no one party often has a chance of gaining power alone, and parties
Political Parties
Political Parties: A Sociological Study of the Oligarchical Tendencies of Modern Democracy is a book by sociologist Robert Michels, published in 1911 , and first introducing the concept of iron law of oligarchy...
must work with each other to form coalition government
Coalition government
A coalition government is a cabinet of a parliamentary government in which several political parties cooperate. The usual reason given for this arrangement is that no party on its own can achieve a majority in the parliament...
s.
2011 Parliamentary election
A parliamentary election was held on 17 September 2011.2010 Parliamentary election
Past elections and referendums
Past elections:• Saeima (parliament): 1993, 1995, 1998, 2002, 2006, 2010
• Local/municipal: 1994, 1997, 2001, 2005, 2009
• Europarliament: 2004 (9 seats), 2009 (8 seats + 1 in case of Lisbon treaty coming into force)
• Referenda: 1998 (citizenship); 1999 (pensions); 2003 (EU); 2007 (national security law); 2008 (pensions)
• Presidential: 1993, 1996, 1999, 2003, 2007
See also
- Electoral calendar
- Electoral system
- Latvian parliamentary election, 2010
External links
- Adam Carr's Election Archive
- Parties and Elections in Europe
- National Elections Commission of Latvia
- OSCE reports on Latvian elections
- NSD: European Election Database - Latvia publishes regional level election data; allows for comparisons of election results, 1990-2010