Latvia
Latvia transitioned to democracy in 1991, when the country gained independence from the Soviet Union (USSR). It performs in the high range across all Global State of Democracy (GSoD) categories of democracy. It is amongst the world’s top 25 per cent with regard to all factors, except for Inclusive Suffrage, Electoral Participation, Effective Parliament and Civic Engagement. Over the past five years, it has shown notable improvements in Rule of Law and Predictable Enforcement, with no significant declines. Latvia is a high-income country, although challenges to its economy and society emerge from de-population due to emigration, political corruption and above average levels of inequality.
Akin to the other Baltic states, the current political landscape in Latvia is shaped by the country’s past under the Soviet Union. For instance, the Latvian language has become a marker in the drive to reinforce a national identity, creating dividing lines with the Russian-speaking populace, many of whom settled in Latvia during the time of the USSR and today constitute approximately one quarter of Latvia’s population. Approximately 10 per cent of the population has non-citizen status, a legacy of the USSR, and is excluded from the right to vote, despite routes to naturalization and recent legislation which stipulates that no child born on the territory of Latvia is a non-citizen as of 2020. Despite signs of change, the geopolitical consequences of the Russian war of aggression in Ukraine have continued to feed this legacy of historical memory in Latvia. Simultaneously, while Latvia joined both the European Union and North Atlantic Treaty Organization in 2004, and the eurozone in 2014, support for regional integration is not necessarily deep-seated. Although Euroscepticism among politicians and political parties is rare, current issues in Latvian politics – such as emigration and the urban-rural divide – are often tied to European integration in the minds of the public. Relatedly, trust in government is notably low, as is voter turnout – which has stood between 55 and 59 per cent over the last decade. Low trust is exacerbated by cases of corruption in public procurement deals, including the ‘Digitalgate’ scandal which implicated several high-profile public officials. In addition, Latvia’s banking sector has been buffeted by a string of money laundering scandals, which led to the closure of one of Latvia’s biggest banks, ABLV, in 2018. Latvia also struggles with high inequality, where poverty is geographically concentrated in rural areas in the East, and is closely tied to poor social inclusion, including reduced access to good quality housing, health services, and education.
GSoD Indices data show that Latvia has consistently been a high performer on gender equality, leading Central and Eastern European countries. Nevertheless, sexual violence, unequal distribution of unpaid care, gaps in wages and access to education and decision-making – political, economic and social – are among the challenges that persist in attaining gender equality.
Looking ahead, it will be important to watch Absence of Corruption, which has continuously fluctuated over time in Latvia. Whether sincere anti-corruption reform efforts to address the prosecution of corruption and improve political and business integrity are put and held in place remains to be seen.
Monthly Event Reports
March 2024 | President approves amendments to Law on Associations and Foundations
On 6 March, the President promulgated amendments to the Law on Associations and Foundations, which make it mandatory for NGOs to specify their “scope of activity,” namely to clarify the nature of their operations. The changes are intended to fill data gaps in the activities of NGOs and improve monitoring to reduce the vulnerability of civil society. The Ministry of Justice has observed underreporting when such classification is voluntary. Further, the amendments make it easier for authorities to liquidate inactive NGOs, or those with financial violations, in order to counteract “shell organizations” used for money laundering and terrorist financing. In its most recent review, experts in the Council of Europe’s MONEYVAL committee recommended that Latvia systematically identify non-profit organizations at a higher risk of financing of terrorism. According to a 2019 report from the Latvian Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU), NGOs generally do not provide direct terrorist financing but can act as intermediaries to attract funding and conceal the money’s purpose or use.
February 2024 | Constitutional Court upholds language requirements for Russian citizens
On 15 February, the Constitutional Court found that requirements for Russian citizens holding Latvian permanent residence permits to certify their knowledge of Latvian language comply with the Constitution and are proportionate with the duty of the state to defend national security and defend the national language. Amendments to the Immigration Law, adopted in 2022, gave Russian citizens until September 2023 (later extended to November) to demonstrate basic Latvian language skills in order to maintain a permanent residence permit. The ruling found that the provisions of the Immigration Law provide citizens of Russia with a “real opportunity” to obtain the legal grounds to continue staying in Latvia. The application was submitted by Russian citizens holding permanent residence permits. The Kremlin has objected to the amendments, and has sought to play up perceived unequal treatment of the Russian ethnic minority to create rifts in Latvian society and strengthen Russian identity in the diaspora in Baltic states.
December 2023 | Compromise in Parliament paves the way for local referenda
The Parliament has passed amendments to ensure municipal referenda can be conducted in the period before the roll-out of the electronic voter register. Municipal referenda were initially planned to be introduced on 1 January 2024, but were held up over insufficient technical and logistical preparedness. The amendments make it possible to vote in municipal referenda using registration envelopes in-person at local government polling stations in cases where the electronic systems do not work or cannot be used for cybersecurity reasons. It will be possible to initiate a municipal referendum as of 1 September 2024 electronically. The compromise expedites the introduction of municipal referenda, which the Interior Ministry had proposed to postpone until 2026, accelerating the possibilities for participation in decision-making on local issues.
November 2023 | Parliament votes to allow same-sex civil unions
In a final reading, the Parliament adopted legislation to recognise same-sex partnerships for the first time. The legislation allows partners to visit each other in hospital, to provide consent for each other’s medical treatment, and expands access to social security and tax benefits for same-sex couples. Civil society noted that there is more work to be done, since the changes do not include the right to adopt children or for partners to inherit from each other. The legislation, submitted by the Ministry of Justice, follows a Constitutional Court ruling in 2020 which found that the state must provide legal protections to same-sex partners. According to the amendments, same-sex couples will be able to register partnerships from 1 July 2024. However, opposition parties have resisted the changes, and have set out to halt the legislation and collect the 154,241 signatures (representing 10 per cent of Latvia’s electorate) required to put it to a referendum.
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GSoD Indices Data 2013-2022
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Factors of Democratic Performance Over Time
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