Latvian Political Monitor

AS achieves its best ever result in Saeima elections and wins 42 mandates

In the 15th Saeima elections, 'Apvienotais saraksts' wins with a convincing majority of votes https://t.co/84G2d6u8bA

TEXT BROADCAST ⟩ About 99% of votes counted: AS shows its best result in the history of Saeima elections, ZZS is below the threshold

TEXT BROADCAST ⟩ About 99% of votes counted: "United List" shows the best result in the history of Saeima elections

AS achieves its best result ever in the Saeima elections and obtains 42 mandates.

In the 15th Saeima elections, in fact, the "United List" has won and gains 42 mandates.

AS achieves its all-time best result in the Saeima elections (1)

TEXT LIVE ⟩ Around 99% of votes counted: AS achieves its best result ever in Saeima elections (55)

Ideas. Creativity. Excellence.

Historic victory: “United List” wins 42 seats in the Saeima

The United List, represented by Prime Minister Andris Kulbergs, has won the largest number of parliamentary seats gained by a single political force in the history of Latvian parliaments after the 15th Saeima elections. Until now, the most convincing victory in Saeima election history was achieved by Latvia's Way in 1993, which won 36 seats. According to provisional results after 99.4% of votes were counted, the United List gained approximately 35% of voter support, securing it at least 40 seats. https://t.co/n79XNQ1cIE #Vēlēšanas2026

Election paradox: Uzulnieks received record 'pluses' despite drunk driving scandal

Saeima election results are almost fully compiled. 1.3% of voters – about 11,000 votes – have voted for “Austošā Saule Latvijai” (ASL). This is not the result we set as our goal. That must be honestly admitted. The campaign will be evaluated and our work improved so as to improve the result in the future. At the same time, the result is not a “catastrophe.” It is respectable for a new party contesting its first election. It is more than impressive given the smallest advertising budget of all parties in this campaign – by a many-fold margin. It is a good result considering the absurd situation in which the public broadcaster denied us participation in most TV debates while giving a platform to pro-Kremlin parties. We have not finished this story yet, and we will seek solutions to remedy the injustice. From the bottom of my heart I thank every one of our voters – every vote was a vote of conscience, a vote for the values that unite us, a vote for the vision of a Latvian, safe and prosperous Latvia. You laid the strongest foundation for a future political force. You voted according to your own judgment and with the courage to go against the current. You did not vote for noise. Every voter of ours is someone we will continue to fight for, and we will also fight for the interests, dignity and honour of all Latvian and patriotic citizens, convincing them with our further work. Thank you to our party’s activists and candidates in these elections. At no point in this campaign did we betray our convictions, enter into compromises or seek the easier path, preserving the essence that we laid in our party’s foundations on 23 August last year. Preserving that essence is more important than quick external successes. Being a forge for the next Latvian political leaders is one of ASL’s tasks that goes beyond the electoral campaign framework. This campaign was a very intense political school for many of our party members. A leader’s greatest satisfaction is seeing others also realise leadership qualities in themselves – I had the opportunity to experience this many times. ASL continues its work. We will regroup, change tactics and move forward. The result of the vote does not change the fundamental values of our ideas and programme – it shows the current balance of forces and the ability to convince others. These are changeable factors arising both from the environment and from our own abilities. Working to raise our own capacities is one of a political party’s tasks, and we will continue that – for us, politics is a path and a calling, not a matter of a single election. As for external factors, there were several that influenced our result, but I will mention only a couple of the most important. First, the massive propaganda urging people “not to throw away their vote” on new parties. The “lesser evil” principle still works. Combined with the ban on participating in most debates, we ended up with an unfair field of play, while experts hypocritically mumbled about the value of democracy and civic engagement. Second, the extremely great disappointment in politics in general. The credit of trust that the people gave to the authorities after the divisive Covid-19 era in 2022 under war conditions was squandered. The lowest voter turnout ever is entirely the responsibility of “Jaunā Vienotība.” But the disappointment is not only in them, but in politicians in general. We felt it absolutely everywhere we went during the agitation. In this situation, from a public relations perspective, “Apvienotais saraksts” and Andris Kulbergs showed themselves excellently, positioning themselves, while being in power, as opposition figures close to the people and “surprised” by all sorts of troubles. Together with a huge campaign budget, this worked and the result is unprecedented – the 35% result “sucked the oxygen” out of the other Latvian parties, leaving very many below the line or with a significantly smaller result. Except for the pro-Kremlin parties, which have an ethnic electorate. But ASL does not look at public relations, but at deeds and substance. We see no significant change of political course since the time when “Jaunā Vienotība” led the state. Not even better work – I remind you that one of Kulbergs’ priorities was ensuring quality elections, which, of course, was again on the verge of failure. In power is, and most likely will remain, a centrist liberal and pro-immigration party without real values. A party whose policy consequences will become increasingly visible even to those Latvians who did not yet see them during Kulbergs’ short government before the elections. The awakening after the noise of the campaign may be unpleasant. But it is inevitable and will make people listen to our words anew, reassessing their choices.

When elections become an argument in sanctions negotiations

Ideas. Creativity. Excellence.

I congratulate the United List and especially Andris Kulbergs on an exceptionally convincing victory in the elections! Thank you to all MMN supporters who came to the elections and voted for changing the rules! A proper analysis of the results will require a proper sleep, but even after a couple of hours of sleep it is clear that the results are not what we had hoped for. Overall, we finish in eighth place with approximately 3.4% of the vote. In Riga we came seventh, elsewhere lower in position, yet in Vidzeme, Zemgale and Kurzeme with higher percentages than in Riga. The main thing is that our work does not end at all. It is only beginning. The easy path to having a say on the first attempt did not work out for us; we will have to take the long road. And so we will continue what we have started, which has already grown with the experience of the first battle — we will build a proper, right-wing, nationally conservative, ideologically grounded party that offers to lift Latvian politics out of empty chatter and leftist expertism, salvation from the sure path towards total over-regulation, from drowning in debt and losing sovereignty. But for now, changing Latvia's course from the trajectory towards the abyss to something else has been entrusted to Kulbergs. From extra-parliamentary opposition we will continue to supply Kulbergs with ideas on how to do it. If the United List does not go into the small coalition with NA, then nothing good shines for restricting immigration. Without our active criticism and ideological impetus from outside, the elected parliament will not be good at all. That is why we cannot afford any three-year vacation. Latvia now needs not only creative MMN campaigning, but a real contribution from the sidelines, so that this convincing United List victory does not become Latvia's big loss. The relevance of the electoral reform we proposed will only be increased by the United List's result, because the Saeima will now fill with at least a dozen or so people who have more minuses than pluses, and about whom the wider public knows little. The larger the percentage for a party, the greater the bandwagon effect. To understand the degree of the United List's bandwagoning, it is enough to know that the day before the lists were submitted, a candidate who had also participated in our political council a couple of times suddenly refused to take part in our list, agreed to take part in the United List's list, and will now be an MP, elected there with a high number. Thank you for your support! My head is completely unclear; these are only first thoughts.

Strong support for the Progressives in the US and Canada

TEXT BROADCAST ⟩ Around 97% of votes counted: the United List is in the lead, the composition of the 15th Saeima is beginning to take shape