Latvian parliamentary election, 2011

• SC: 31
• OCD: 13
• ZRP: 22
• V: 20
• NA: 14

The Latvian parliamentary election in 2011 was held on 17 September 2011. It was the election to the 11th Saeima of the Republic of Latvia.

Prehistory

It was the first early elections in the history of Latvia. Valdis Zatlers, the then President of Latvia had applied for a referendum on the dissolution of the Saeima to the Constitutional Court on May 28, 2011. This favor on 23 July, about 95 percent of voters ( turnout: 44.73 %).

Electoral system

It seats 100 were determined in the Latvian Parliament again. The legislature was four years. It was a five-percent electoral threshold. Was selected by proportional representation.

Were entitled to vote all Latvian citizens upon reaching the age of 18. In order to vote, the voters had to be registered in the national register of voters.

Polling stations were open from 7 clock in the morning to 20 clock in the evening. Foreign Latvians were able to cast their votes in 39 different countries with there a total of 77 available polling stations.

Election result

The selected mainly from the Russian-speaking population Saskaņas Centrs was the strongest party for the first time. Of the so-called oligarch parties, only the CCS alliance overcame the 5 % threshold.

Government formation

Political scientists saw two variants to form a government as probable: A center-left coalition of ZRP, Vienotība and Saskaņas Centrs or a center-right coalition of ZRP, Vienotība and National Alliance. On October 10, the latter three parties signed a coalition agreement after lengthy negotiations. The coalition government has been provided by the escape of six deputies from ZRP in question on 16 October. The ability to govern was then made ​​by individual contracts of the three coalition parties with these six deputies. On October 17, exactly one month after the election of the 11th Saeima met for the first time. On October 25, the Cabinet Dombrovskis III was confirmed with 57 votes.