Saeima

Saeima
Type
Type	Unicameral
Leadership
Speaker	Ināra Mūrniece, National Alliance since 2014
Structure
Seats	100
Political groups	Government (61)      Unity (23)      Union of Greens and Farmers (21)      National Alliance (17) Opposition (39)      Harmony (24)      Latvian Association of Regions (8)      For Latvia from the Heart (7)
Elections
Voting system	Open list proportional representation with a 5% election threshold
Last election	4 October 2014
Next election	2018
Meeting place
House of the Livonian Noble Corporation, Riga
Website
www.saeima.lv

Deputies are elected from five constituencies, based on the cultural regions of Latvia.

Latvia
This article is part of a series on the politics and government of Latvia
Constitution President Andris Bērziņš
Government Cabinet Straujuma II Prime Minister Laimdota Straujuma
Saeima Speaker Ināra Mūrniece Dissolution
Recent elections Saeima: 2010 2011 2014 Presidential: 2007 2011 European: 2004 2009 2014
Political parties Harmony Unity ZZS NA LRA NSL LKS
Administrative divisions Planning regions
Human rights Language policy Non-citizenship
Foreign relations
Other countries Atlas Politics portal

The Saeima (Latvian pronunciation: [sæimaː]) is the parliament of the Republic of Latvia. It is a unicameral parliament consisting of 100 members who are elected by proportional representation, with seats allocated to political parties which gain at least 5% of the popular vote. Elections are scheduled to be held once every four years, normally on the first Saturday of October. The most recent elections were held in October 2014.

The President of Latvia can dismiss the Saeima and request early elections. The procedure for dismissing it involves substantial political risk to the president, including a risk of loss of office. On May 28, 2011, president Valdis Zatlers decided to initiate the dissolution of the Saeima, which was approved in a referendum, and the Saeima was dissolved on 23 July 2011.^[1]

The current Speaker of the Saeima is Ināra Mūrniece.

Deputies are elected to represent one of five constituencies: Kurzeme (13 deputies), Latgale (15), Riga (30), Vidzeme (27), and Zemgale (15). Seats are distributed in each constituency by open list proportional representation among the parties that overcome a 5% national election threshold using a modified version of the Sainte-Laguë method.

Last election

Summary of the 4 October 2014 Latvian Saeima election results

See also

• Deputies of the Saeima

References

External links

• Latvijas Republikas Saeima
• Central Election Commission of Latvia

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Coordinates: 56°57′04″N 24°06′18″E / 56.95111°N 24.10500°E / 56.95111; 24.10500