Siliņa may quit New Unity leadership as Krauze weighs leaving politics

Leaders of New Unity and the Union of Greens and Farmers are considering whether to step down after poor results in the 15th Saeima election, LSM reports.

New Unity leader Evika Siliņa said she felt responsible after the alliance’s representation fell from 26 seats to seven. She said she would discuss the possibility of leaving the leadership with party members, adding that the decision was “a matter of tactics.” Siliņa also said everyone who had been in government should take responsibility.

Some members of Unity, a party within the New Unity alliance, told Latvian Television that it would be fair for the party leadership to accept responsibility. Unity chair Edmunds Jurēvics said the result had been unexpected and that the party would assess the role and work of each candidate.

Arvils Ašeradens, New Unity’s candidate for prime minister, also said the party would review its mistakes and needed change. He did not win a seat in parliament. Siliņa described his defeat as the result of an emotional vote and said the success of the United List showed voters wanted new faces in parliament.

Siliņa said she was disappointed that former health minister Hosams Abu Meri had not been elected, and alleged that he had faced a smear campaign. She added that reforms in healthcare were never popular.

Union of Greens and Farmers leader Armands Krauze said the party’s leadership would assess responsibility for the failure to enter parliament, which he said had happened for the first time in the party’s 24-year history. Krauze said he was seriously considering leaving politics and might not run in future elections.