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Lativa Page |
Welcome to ElectionInfo.com's pages on Lativa
Official Name: Republic of Latvia
Capital: Riga
Area : 64,500 square kilometres ( 24,904 square miles )
Major cities (Population)
Riga 924,000 (1995 estimate)
Daugavpils 127,729 (1991 estimate)
Population: 2,557,000 (1995 estimate)
Population growth rate: -0.9 per cent (1990-1995 average)
Type of government: Republic
Independence: 6 September 1991 (from the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics [USSR])
Constitution: In 1993 the Constitution of 15 February 1922 was fully restored.
Voting Rights: Universal at age 18
Government
The national legislature of Latvia, called the Saeima, is a unicameral body composed of 100 members. Members are elected by popular vote for three-year terms. The legislature elects a president to serve as head of state for a term of three years and three months. With the approval of the legislature, the president selects a prime minister and a cabinet, who carry out the day-to-day operations of government. Unlike most other former Soviet republics, Latvia is not a member of the Commonwealth of Independent States.
Citizenship and voting eligibility laws in the country changed considerably during the early 1990s. All residents, including Soviet military personnel, were eligible to vote in the country’s first multi-party elections of the national legislature in 1990. In 1993, however, restrictions on voting eligibility were imposed. Residents who lived in Latvia before 1940 and their descendants are still eligible to vote, regardless of ethnicity. Other inhabitants are required to meet certain residency requirements and pass a proficiency exam in the Latvian language.
A new citizenship bill that would allow for the naturalization of non-Latvians was under consideration in the Saeima in 1994. The bill proposed offering citizenship to 50,000 people in 1995 and an additional 180,000 between 1996 and 1999. Preference would be given to those who had lived in Latvia prior to 1940, or had a Latvian spouse or parent. The bill set quotas for citizenship applications after the year 2000, a provision that was criticized by Russia as well as by some European nations and international organizations. In a revised bill the Saeima removed the quota system but still required a language proficiency test and barred applications by former Soviet military personnel.
Recent History
Political liberalization in the USSR during the late 1980s sparked a revival of Latvian nationalism. After communism collapsed in the USSR in August 1991, the Soviet government formally recognized the independence of Latvia, Estonia, and Lithuania on 6 September, and all three were admitted to the United Nations (UN) later that month. Latvia held its first parliamentary elections since independence in June 1993. The new parliament elected an economist, Guntis Ulmanis, as president. In February 1994 Latvia joined the Partnership for Peace programme as a precursor to future membership in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).
In March 1994 Latvian and Russian officials reached an agreement for the withdrawal of Russian troops by 31 August, and the last Russian troops departed as scheduled. Despite some government reshuffling in early 1997, Latvia has continued to strengthen its new democracy and to enjoy steady economic growth.
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