Latvia Holds Parliamentary Election As Security And Cost Concerns Loom

Voters across Latvia headed to polling stations on Saturday to elect 100 members of the Saeima. The vote takes place under a proportional system with 14 political parties competing for seats.

National defense and economic pressures emerged as the primary issues of the campaign. Latvia borders Russia and Belarus. The ongoing Russian war against Ukraine has elevated regional security anxieties across the Baltic states. At the same time, high consumer prices, sluggish growth and healthcare costs have strained family finances.

Germany deployed four Eurofighter jets to the Lielvarde air base in central Latvia to help patrol the country's airspace during the election week. The mission operates under NATO's air policing framework. Officials in Berlin and Riga arranged the temporary mission after multiple drone incidents occurred along NATO's eastern flank. Latvia has no fighter aircraft of its own and depends on allied patrols.

Prime Minister Andris Kulbergs took office in May after a previous coalition government collapsed. His center-right United List alliance led pre-election polling. Kulbergs campaigned on strict support for Ukraine, new anti-drone defenses and maintaining military spending at roughly 5% of gross domestic product.

Opponents on the political right and populist alliances, including Sovereign Power, challenged those spending plans. The opposition argued that the government should devote more resources to domestic living costs rather than foreign aid and military outlays. Neither bloc has proposed removing Latvia from NATO or the European Union.

Early voting began earlier in the week, drawing tens of thousands of advance voters to election stations. Polling stations will close Saturday evening, when election authorities expect to report partial vote counts ahead of preliminary official results on Sunday.