Country profile
Latvia
Latvijas Republika
Europe · Northern Europe
LV · LVA
- Capital
- Riga
- Population
- 1,829,000
- Area
- 64,559 km²
- Democracy index
- 85
- Regime type
- Robust Democracy
Events
Ballots from Latvia
The latest elections, referendums, and opinion polls from Latvia. Community totals are not official results.
Soon(1)1 published ballot
Classification
Democracy profile
The score and regime label are assigned by Porto Voto using our in-house democracy index and classification framework, not ratings from governments or external agencies.
Democracy index
85/100
Regime type
Robust Democracy
Latvia maintains a stable parliamentary democracy characterized by regular, competitive elections and a strong commitment to the rule of law. As a member of the European Union and NATO, the country upholds rigorous standards of transparency, judicial independence, and protection for civil liberties. The political landscape is marked by a multi party system where power transitions occur peacefully and in accordance with constitutional norms. While the nation faces ongoing challenges related to geopolitical pressures in the Baltic region and the need to address persistent corruption risks within its public administration, its institutional framework remains resilient. Media pluralism is robust, and the state provides significant space for civil society to engage in policy discourse, ensuring that the government remains accountable to the electorate and bound by democratic checks and balances.
Last evaluation:
How we classify regimes →World Factbook
Country background
A concise introduction to Latvia, together with notes on how power and law are organized, to put local ballots in context.
Several eastern Baltic tribes merged in medieval times to form the ethnic core of the Latvian people (ca. 8th-12th centuries A.D.). The region subsequently came under the control of Germans, Poles, Swedes, and finally Russians. A Latvian republic emerged following World War I, but the USSR annexed it in 1940 -- an action never recognized by the US and many other countries.
Latvia reestablished its independence in 1991 after the breakup of the Soviet Union. Although the last Russian troops left in 1994, the status of the Russian minority (some 25% of the population) remains of concern to Moscow. Latvia joined both NATO and the EU in 2004; it joined the euro zone in 2014 and the OECD in 2016.