On Saturday, October 3, Latvians vote in parliamentary elections that are likely to leave power in the hands of pro-Ukrainian Prime Minister Andris Kulbergs, though deep political fragmentation could complicate formation of the government. Ukrinform.
100 members of the Seimas (Parliament) are elected for a four-year term.
According to opinion polls, Kulbergs' centrist United List is leading with about 14% of the vote, but it is followed by the pro-Russian Sovereign Power party.
Kulbergs calls for providing Ukraine with "everything necessary" to win over Russia. Throughout his election campaign, he also promised to strengthen Latvia's anti-drone capabilities and keep defense spending at 5% of GDP — one of the highest rates in NATO.
However, his pro-Kremlin rivals argue that Latvia should stop any aid to Ukraine and instead focus on cost-of-living issues, especially among the country's Russian-speaking minority.
Polls show that at least two more parties can get into parliament - the populist group Latvia First to the left-wing Progressive party, popular among young voters.
In the Baltic countries, in particular in Latvia, many voters are in a tense state after official warnings of possible Russian aggression and the growing number of incursions of Russian drones into the airspace of countries caused by russia's war against Ukraine.
Polling stations opened at 8:00 am on Saturday and will close at 8:00 pm. The first results are expected in a few hours, and the final results are likely to be known after midnight.