At stake in this election:

• 100 seats in the Latvian Parliament (Saeima)

Description of government structure:

• Chief of State: President Andris BERZINS (since 8 July 2011)[i]
• Head of Government: Prime Minister Laimdota STRAUJUMA (since 22 January 2014)[ii]
• Assembly: Latvia has a unicameral Parliament (Saeima) with 100 seats[iii]

Description of electoral system:

• The President is elected by parliament to serve a 4-year term
• Prime Minister is nominated by the president with the approval of the parliament
• In the Parliament (Saeima) 100 members are elected by proportional representation from party lists by popular vote to serve 4-year terms*

***Every party has a separate ballot and electors are given as many ballots as there are parties contesting the race. When finished voting, electors place the ballot of their choice in an envelope to be deposited in the ballot box. Each party ballot contains a list of candidates predetermined by the party. Electors can accept the list order as presented or alter the list order to their preference. They may do this by both placing a "+" by the names of candidates they want to move up the list order, and by crossing out names that they would like to see be moved down the list order. The vote for each candidate is equal to the number of votes cast for the list, plus or minus specific votes. Those candidates with the highest totals are declared elected, up to the number of seats allotted to each list. Distribution of seats among them is based on the Saint-Lagüe method. A threshold of 5% is required in order for a party to enter the parliament.

Election Note:

On Saturday 4 October 2014, Latvia will hold elections for the 100 seats in the Parliament (Saeima).

Main parties in the electoral race:

• Party: National Alliance / acionālā apvienība „Visu Latvijai!” – „Tēvzemei un Brīvībai (LNNK)
  • Leader: RAIVIS DZINTARS
  • Seats won in last election: 14
• Alliance: Harmony Centre / Saskaņas Centrs (SC)
  • Leader: Nils USAKOVS
  • Seats won in last election: 31
• Alliance: Union of Greens and Farmers / Zaļo un Zemnieku Savienība (ZZS)
  • Leader: Raimonds VEJONIS
  • Seats won in last election: 13
• Party: Unity / Vienotība
  • Leader: Solvita ĀBOLTIŅA
  • Seats won in last election: 20

Last election:

• The last election to the Parliament (Saeima) in Latvia was held on 17 September 2011.[iv] Turnout was 59 percent with 917,680 of 1,542,193 people casting ballots.[v] While Harmony Centre won 31 seats, Unity, Reform Party, and National Alliance formed a governing coalition. Results can be found here.

Population and number of registered voters:

• Population: 2,165,165 (July 2014 est.)[vi]
• Registered Voters: 1,542,193 (July 2011)[vii]

Gender Data:

• Female Population: 1,161,361 (July 2014 est)[i]
• Is Latvia a signatory to CEDAW: Yes (since 1992)[ii]
• Has Latvia ratified CEDAW: Yes (14 April 1992)[iii]
• Gender Quota: No Law.
• Female Candidates in this election: N/A
• Number of Female Legislators: 25 (25%) of 100 seats in the Parliament (September 2011)[iv]
• Human Development Index (HDI) Position: 48[v]
• Social Institutions and Gender Index (SIGI) Ranking: Not Ranked (latest rankings are from 2012)[vi]