By March 1, political parties must submit updated (current) lists of their members to the Register of Enterprises. It should be noted that for a party to be registered, it must have at least 200 members. If a party wants to participate in the Saeima elections, it must have at least 500 members.
Of course, it is possible to create a political association. However, to participate in parliamentary elections, it (the association) must have at least 500 members in total. Thus, for small parties, creating an association is the only way to enter the Saeima elections.
However, from time to time, discussions flare up about the need to raise the bar for membership requirements for parties even higher – both for the establishment of parties and for participation in parliamentary elections.
72 parties. Who's more?
It must be acknowledged that such an idea – to tighten the requirements for parties – is not without basis. Just think about it. In small Latvia, where de facto only about 1.6–1.7 million people live, the Register of Enterprises lists – attention! – as many as 72 parties! Or one party for every 25,000 Latvians, including children, non-citizens, and apolitical individuals.
Currently, 18 of them are in the process of liquidation – the electorate did not appreciate their political ideas.
I bet that many of you, dear readers, have never even heard the names of many of the liquidated parties! For example, there was the party "Sadarbība" (Cooperation), and back in 2011, the party "Sabiedriskā komiteja" (Public Committee) was formed.
The political organization called "A8 partija" existed for over 10 years. What people were thinking when they created a party with such a name is a mystery!
But many of those parties that de jure continue to operate remain terra incognita for most Latvians. For example, have you heard that we have a party called "Brīvam cilvēkam" (For a Free Person)? Interestingly, if this party is for free people, then are all the others for unfree ones?
And there is also a party called "Producing Latvia" – apparently, its founders wanted to contribute to the revival of production in Latvia... But something went wrong – both with the party and with production...
Local-scale politicians
Among the many parties, there are also so-called local parties – that is, parties of a specific city or region. They have no "state" ambitions; they were created specifically to participate in municipal elections – in a specific municipality. The goal is to try to compete with larger parties at least at the local level and not allow them to monopolize power in their hometown (region).
It should be noted that many of the parties created in the 2000s, although they formally exist, have not elected a single deputy to either local governments or the Saeima in all elections!
Veterans of political labor
To be fair, there are also veteran parties – they were created immediately after the restoration of independence and are still active.
Thus, the Latvian Farmers' Union appeared back in 1990, as did the Latvian Green Party, but these parties have long been participating in parliamentary elections as part of political associations.
Some parties, despite being created back in the 90s, have already "got lost" in this party abundance, and voters have long forgotten about their existence – for example, the Christian Democratic Union, established in 1997, had its representatives in parliament only in the late 90s – early 2000s. In the late 90s, representatives of this party worked for the first and last time in the Riga City Council...
And the Party of Revival, created in 1998, has not revived. But it sometimes reminds us of itself with extravagant moves – for example, in last year's elections to the Riga City Council, this party submitted a list... with one candidate!
Who's new?
For three decades, there has been a "tradition" of creating new parties for every election – most often for the Saeima. The upcoming parliamentary elections are no exception.
However, this time, a new party specifically created for the elections that would immediately claim significant representation in the Saeima did not emerge. It should be noted that in the upcoming Saeima elections, only those parties that were established at least a year before the elections can participate. This requirement has been met by the party that will try to "bite off" part of the electorate from the National Alliance – Austošā saule (Rising Sun).
Meanwhile, the well-known director Alvis Hermanis was clearly late in creating a new party, so he had to "use" a previously created mini-party "Republika," which will be renamed "Mēs mainam noteikumus" (We Change the Rules).
Ironically, Hermanis and Co. plan to fight with the new-old party... against parties or, more precisely, against the party system. It should be reminded that the director and his associates want to carry out a radical reform of the electoral system and henceforth elect deputies from single-member districts (majoritarian system).
Of course, there are many flaws in the existing system, and some changes are needed – it is hardly necessary for us to have 72 parties. However, it is unlikely that the majoritarian system will be a panacea for all our troubles in big politics.
Reform, but not revolution
If changes are to be made, they should be less radical, so as not to swing from one extreme to another.
For example, it would be worth considering a mixed system – half of the deputies are elected from party lists, and the other half from single-member districts. Perhaps the requirements for the establishment of parties should also be raised. And the party financing system is, to put it mildly, not perfect.
Crisis is evident
Overall, the political crisis is evident – there is a sharp shortage of bright political personalities, the quality level of the parliament is declining from election to election, and the level of political responsibility, excuse me, is below the plinth...
And the absence of a de facto system of referendums discourages any interest from society in the political process. If it were not for the geopolitical shocks of recent years that mobilized part of the electorate, voter turnout would continue to plummet catastrophically.
In other words, changes in the political system are overdue. But it is unlikely that they should be expected in the less than 8 months remaining before the elections.
