Latvia First

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Not to be confused with Latvia's First Party.

Latvia First
Latvija pirmajā vietā
AbbreviationLPV
ChairpersonJūlija Stepaņenko
FoundersAinārs Šlesers
Jūlija Stepaņenko
Linda Liepiņa
Ļubova Švecova
Vilis Krištopans
Founded14 August 2021; 6 months ago (2021-08-14)
HeadquartersMūkusalas iela 41, Riga
Membership (2021)499[1]
IdeologyRight-wing populism
Vaccine hesitancy
Political positionRight-wing
Colours  Burgundy
Saeima
2 / 100
(de facto)[a]
Website
latvijapirmajavieta.lv

Latvia First (Latvian: Latvija pirmajā vietā, LPV) is a right-wing political party in Latvia.[2][3]

It was founded in August 2021 by businessman and former member of parliament, former Minister of Transport, former vice – major of Riga, Ainārs Šlesers.[4] The party board chair is MP Jūlija Stepaņenko. The prequel to the party, the organisation Latvia First (Latvian: Latvija — pirmajā vietā), was first registered on 1 July 2021,[5] before the party itself was established at a founding congress on 14 August in Riga.[6] The party is registered by the Latvian Register of Enterprises on 10 September 2021.[7]

History[]

In June 2021, businessman, the former Minister of Transport and Minister of Economy, former member of parliament, former vice – major of Riga, Ainārs Šlesers announced that he would run in the 2022 parliamentary elections for a new party that he himself would start. On 1 July, he founded the organisation Latvia – First.[8]

The founding party congress was held in Riga on 14 August 2021. Jūlija Stepaņenko was elected to chair the party board, as well as to be the party's candidate for the role of President of Latvia. Ainārs Šlesers became the party's candidate for the Prime Minister's seat, and former MP was chosen as the party's candidate for Speaker of the Saeima.[8]

Right after the founding party congress, LPV announced its support for the 18 August protest against 'compulsory' vaccination organized by the Law and Order party. The protest was announced in response to the government bill that would make vaccination against COVID-19 mandatory for those working in healthcare, social-care, and education sectors and give employers the right to fire unvaccinated people.[9] An hour before the start of the protest, LPV organized an election rally near the Freedom Monument, the crowd of several hundred party supporters then headed to the Riga Castle, where the main event took place.[10]

The party subsequently organized two more protests against 'mandatory' vaccination on 18 September and 2 October. During the September protest, the party leaders unveiled an ultimatum to the President of Latvia Egils Levits, asking him to stop restricting people's freedoms, save 'voluntary' vaccination, and change the government.[11] Levits was given two weeks to satisfy the demands, and, if not, the party promised to recall the President. Even though none of the demands were met after two weeks, no initiative on recalling Levits has been announced, instead, on 2 October, the party organized another protest near the Freedom Monument.[12]

The party has two de facto MPs – Jūlija Stepaņenko and , both elected on the Harmony party list in the 2018 elections.[a]

Notes[]

  1. ^ a b Whille not officially forming a parliamentary faction, the two independent MPs Jūlija Stepaņenko and are members of the party. As such, the party holds two de facto seats in the Saeima without constituting a faction.

References[]

  1. ^ Spalvēns, Raivis (10 September 2021). "Reģistrēta partija 'Latvija pirmajā vietā'; ģenerālsekretāra amatā iecelts Cimdars". delfi.lv (in Latvian). Retrieved 10 September 2021.
  2. ^ "September party ratings suggest voters are starting to wake up". eng.lsm.lv. 6 October 2021. Retrieved 23 November 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  3. ^ "Latvia". Europe Elects. 2021.
  4. ^ "Partijas 'Latvija pirmajā vietā' premjera kandidāts būs Šlesers, Valsts prezidenta amata kandidāte – Stepaņenko". LETA (in Latvian). DELFI. 14 August 2021. Retrieved 14 August 2021.
  5. ^ "Biedrība "Latvija - pirmajā vietā"" (in Latvian). Latvian Register of Enterprises. Retrieved 14 August 2021.
  6. ^ "Notiks Šlesera partijas "Latvija pirmajā vietā" dibināšanas kongress". LETA (in Latvian). TV NET. 14 August 2021. Retrieved 14 August 2021.
  7. ^ "LATVIJA PIRMAJĀ VIETĀ". www.firmas.lv (in Latvian). 10 September 2021. Retrieved 7 December 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  8. ^ a b Māris, Klūga (14 August 2021). "Šlesera partijas "Latvija pirmajā vietā" Valsts prezidenta amata kandidāte būs Jūlija Stepaņenko". LETA (in Latvian). Public Broadcasting of Latvia. Retrieved 14 August 2021.
  9. ^ "Compulsory vaccination in Latvia: who and when?". eng.lsm.lv. Retrieved 7 December 2021.
  10. ^ "Thousands protest against 'compulsory' vaccination in Rīga". eng.lsm.lv. Retrieved 7 December 2021.
  11. ^ "Vairāk nekā 1000 protestētāju izsaka ultimātu Levitam" [More than 1000 protesters express an ultimatum to Levits]. Neatkarīga Rīta Avīze (in Latvian). 18 September 2021. Retrieved 7 December 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  12. ^ "Rīgā notiks Šlesera plānotā protesta akcija" [A protest event is planned in Riga]. Skaties (in Latvian). 2 October 2021. Retrieved 7 December 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)

External links[]

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